Xander's Green Eyed Obsession
by Grayswandir
Summary: Xander's post-graduate cross-country adventure may not have led him far from Sunnydale, but it did bring a few changes. An interest in melee combat and . . . a British boyfriend? Slash, Harry/Xander, Anya!bashing, HP Book-canon
1. Mister Green Eyes

Title: Xander's Green-Eyed Obsession 1/?

Author: Grayswandir

Fandom: BtVS, Harry Potter

Warnings: Slash (duh!), future Anya!bashing

Pairing: Harry Potter/Xander Harris

Disclaimer: HP belongs to JK Rowling, BtVS and its sundry belong to Joss Whedon

Author's Note: This fic has been an idea for quite some time and one of those projects that my beta has been wanting me to work on. Hope it is enjoyed by all.

* * *

"Xander! There you are! I've been looking everywhere for you!" A soft, yet commanding, voice rang through the college common area. Every eye in range turned to identify the owner of that voice. Looks of lust and envy filled all those present. There, frozen in the headlights, stood an average sized young man with intense pools of emerald ivy for eyes. Short raven locks fell haphazard into those same eyes. Slowly, he turned 360 degrees before he winced. "Sorry, didn't mean to interrupt. You all may return to your regular activities."

The Scooby gang remained transfixed as various forms of _Does he really think that will work? _ran across the forefront of their psyches. Their jaws dropped as nearly every student turned back to their previous attentions. They continued to gawk as the as yet unknown individual made his way over to the group sitting in various positions over a circle of furniture. Finding no other seat as nice, the young man plopped down into the cushions on which Xander's feet sat.

As the incredulous silence became unpleasantly oppressing, the mystery man finally spoke up. "If these are your friends, Xander, they were a lot more exciting in your stories." He teased the youth in question.

Buffy recovered from the initial shock and squawked at the stranger in indignation. "Who do you think you are catching everyone's attention and plopping in on a private conversation, uninvited, Mister Green Eyes?"

Amusement ran through the vibrant emeralds as he replied. "'Mister Green Eyes'? Mind if I keep that title? It has a nicer ring to it than many of my other titles." A noticeably British accent flavored the words as they extended out to the gathered friends.

"Uh-. . . sure." Buffy answered speechlessly. Her insecure answer must have been severely amusing as the stranger began to chuckle quietly. Glaring playfully, Buffy took the situation into her control. "I think the Xand-man needs to do someth-ing."

In standard Xander, the man that was being glared at began to splutter. "Wha-! Huh-!"

Furious gestures were issued by other members of the Scoobies. Confusion reigned supreme for several seconds before the decidedly British stranger took pity.

"I believe the 'Scooby gang' is . . fishing? . . for introductions, Mr. Harris." Two mildly tanned arms snaked upwards and tugged at pale hands, dragging Xander down into an overhead hug.

"Oh!" Once more, classic Xander made an appearance, this time in the form of jolted realization. "Intros, right. Uh, Harry, this is Buffy," quick nod, "Willow," a tender finger wave, "Oz," chin lift, "and the G-man," a quick ahem, "er, Giles."

"Pleasure." The newly named Harry smiled lightly.

Silence enveloped the Scooby Gang plus one. Who was this stranger that interrupted the meeting of the supernatural hunters?

As the silence stretched into the extremely excruciating, Willow nervously chirped, "Wow! I've never seen them do that before."

"Yeah. How'd you do that anyway?" Buffy added. "Wish they'd do that all the time." _Would certainly make slaying easier._

"The power of suggestion is a wondrous thing." Harry answered in an airy manner.

"Power of suggestion. Right." Buffy groused. "Liar." She muttered not quite quietly enough.

Luckily for the mannerly delinquent slayer, Harry merely smirked at her disbelief.

"Now Harry, I thought you were British, not Scottish." Xander admonished. "And weren't you suppose to be in New York for that . . . thing?"

"Hmm." Harry breathed. "Yeah, I finished Brussels faster than expected, and they weren't exactly ready in the Big Apple and won't be for another week."

"And I would see how Sunnydale would be a stopover between Brussels and New York." Giles interceded.

"Of course it is, just a quick hop after a stop in Tokyo." Harry snorted out.

Xander nearly leapt out of his spot on the couch, obviously expecting something to be added by his male companion. Several seconds passed before the impatient Xander started to prod the young Brit in the shoulder. "Tokyo? . . . Harry, Tokyo?"

Smiling to the rest of the Scoobies, Harry baited Xander with, "Of course, Xander, I sated my craving for authentic soba noodles. Oh, also grabbed some chocolates while in Brussels, you know, the ones of the Belgian variety."

Growling, Xander poked harder. "Yes, chocolate good, but . . . Tokyo? Yes, you were there? Yes?"

"I was, yes. I went for the soba noodles. Did I not speak English for that part of the conversation? I do slip on occasion, but I would swear it was in English." Harry asked amusedly of the audience before him.

"It sounded English." Oz deadpanned. "British, even."

"Harry!" Xander mewled out.

Laughing, Harry turned sideways. "Are you trying to ask me if I stopped to purchase a katana for you to enjoy?" An aggressive body-shaking nod issued from Xander. "Sorry to disappoint you, Xander—" Harry was interrupted by a pitiful groan. "However, I got you two wakizashi instead. They are in my trunk at the hotel."

A Willow-like squeal of geek joy escaped Xander at Harry's admittance.

An incredulous look plastered over the Scoobies' faces. _This guy was going to buy Xander, Mister No-Sharp-Objects-Please, a katana but bought him two wakizashi instead? Who is this man?_

A face splitting smile lit Harry's face at Xander's reaction. "But if those are not accetable—" Xander immediately wrapped his had over Harry's mouth.

"Don't even think such a thing!" Xander exclaimed vehemently. A twinkle rase in Harry's eyes as he shifted back into the chair. Xander slit forward to wrap his arms fully around Harry's torso. "I would totally love them. When can I have them?"

In lieu of a direct answer, Harry produced a generic key attached to a gaudy, oversized key faub from the local hotel. Stuffing the same key into one of Xander's jeans pockets, Harry asked, "Perhaps soon?"

Silence reverberated about the group as Xander grinned wickedly.

A yawn broke the entrancing atmosphere, causing Harry to reluctantly break away from Xander's embrace. "It was nice meeting you all, putting names to faces, but the jet lag is hitting me." He stood and stretched before turning to face Xander. "I'll be seeing you later, yeah?" A sappy grin and nod came in response.

The group watched as the mystery man walked away, Xander remained plaster with his sappy grin.

Buffy cleared her throat loudly when Harry was safely out of range. All eyes turned to Xander. "Something to share with the group, Xander?"

"No power on this Earth!" Xander answered the inquiring gazes.

"Hmm. So, Harry is a power not of this Earth?" Buffy asked faux-innocently.

A full body blush lit Xander in response. "Ermm. . . I think I'll go collect that gift now." Xander ran from the room in pursuit of the green-eyed individual.

"Huh. Guess 'Ladies Night' was a more successful adventure for Xander than he let on." Buffy commented. Silence fell once more on the remaining Scoobies.

"So, back to dreams." Giles returned the group focus to Buffy's sleeping issues.

TBC


	2. Anya's Return

Title: Xander's Green-Eyed Obsession 2/?

Author: Grayswandir

Fandom: BtVS, Harry Potter

Pairing: Harry Potter/Xander Harris

Author's Note: Wow! That was certainly some swift responses. I'm glad everyone seems to be enjoying this. It's even been beta read by Werewindle. Hee-hee!

* * *

After carefully avoiding the female contingent of the Scoobies following the resolution of the roommate situation, Xander welcomed the idea of working for Giles on a simple cleanup slash organization job. It didn't pay well, but it kept him from seeking out the campus cafeteria. Plus, snacks.

"I don't get your crazy system!" Xander whined as he attempted to shelve Giles' books.

"My system? It's called the alphabet."

_Oops. Perhaps thinking about Harry should be kept away from things that need thinking about._ "Huh! Would you look at that!" Xander exclaimed while bonking himself with an imaginary mallet.

The sound of the door opening interrupted the understanding atmosphere. "You should really lock your door." An ex-demon entered the apartment. _Cue the funeral march._

"Believe me, I am kicking myself." One could imagine Giles formulating how to make Anya melt like the witch in Oz.

"Anya? Last time I saw you fleeing in terror. How'd that work out for you?" Of course Xander knew that returning to Sunnydale is nearly always a last resort. That or it had magnetic properties to former demons and humans that Giles had not shared with the class. _Hmm. . ._

"I need to talk to Xander."

Xander shifted and almost said something, thought better, and waited impatiently. _YES?_

"Go away." She turned a beady-eyed glare on Giles, who remained unimpressed and unmoving.

"Xander come with me." Anya huffed as she dragged Xander outside. He couldn't help but wonder why this crazy female thought she had authority over his motions. _Once a doormat, always a doormat?_ Xander added a mental note to aquire some male friends, if only just to create a barrier between him and crazy.

"Your mother said you were working here?"

"Yeah, need some money and –" Anya swiftly interupted him.

"So where is our relationship going?"

"Our what? Our who?" _Huh?_

"Our relationship. What kind do we have and what is it progressing toward?"

"I-.. We have a relationship?" _When did we end up in a relationship other than supreme disgust with a touch of reluctant acceptance?_

"We went to prom." _It was a crappy date that nearly went very sour on account of hellhounds and if it weren't for that little disaster that involved a head wound and Willow, I'd have gone with Cordelia._

"Yes. On our one and only date. Second date called on account of snake, remember? And then there's the 'you use to be a man killing demon' thing, which, to be fair, is as much my issue as it is yours."

"I can't stop thinking about you. Sometimes in my dreams you're naked."

"If I'm in the checkout lane at Wal-Mart, I've had the same one."_ Please tell me she has only been horning in on my traumatizing dreams._ Thoughts of Harry half-naked dancing the same as he had _that night_ flashed through his mind.

"So I can assume a standing Friday night date and a mutual recognition of Prom night as our dating anniversary?" _GAH! I need a copy of 'Daemons, Dating, and You.' Or whatever... didn't Giles – oh wait. That was 'Wizards, Witches, and Warlocks.'_

"Anya! Slow down! In fact, come to a screeching halt! See, these things kind of have to develop on their own." _That and we aren't even social. I've had more illuminating conversations with tombstones._

"Alright. How?"

"I don't know. It just . . . happens." _Xander, you are such a coward! Tell her that you have a . . . kinda-sorta boyfriend. She isn't a demon anymore. She can't curse you, or him._ Heavy silence filled the air as Anya stared at Xander. Coughing lightly, Xander turned back to Giles' apartment. "I have to get back to work. We can talk later."

* * *

Shocks ran up his spine and back down as Xander turned away from Anya's naked form. _When did nudity become a speech form?_

"Please remove your clothes." Xander worked hard to refrain from giving in to Anya's demand and desire.

"Uh, yeah, that offer is a bit more romantic than Faith-," Xander began.

"Yes?" Anya asked as she began tugging insistently at Xander's jeans.

Gulping forcefully, Xander dropped the deflated juice box and restrained Anya's wrists. "But," he half-wheezed, "at this time, I kinda-sorta am in a dating relationship with a wonderful person who has," a sigh, "the most gorgeous green eyes I have ever seen." La-la land was making a vicious attempt to engulf Xander as he spoke. Shaking his head, Xander met Anya's eyes. "If you wish to be friends, I'll be happy. If you wish more, its not possible. . . right now. Possibly not ever." Stepping back from the nude woman before him, Xander took a deep breath. "And, for both our sanity, I will forget this happened. Please dress and we can talk later."

A ding filled the room. "Fabric softener." Anya half-sobbed.

Xander nodded and turned to the chore, and continued to putz about long after adding the softener to allow Anya privacy as she pulled together and exited through the back door.

A very frustrated scream filled the musty basement.

* * *

_/Hello, handsome./_ Harry's sultry answer never failed to garner a response in Xander.

"Do you flirt like that with all your callers, or just poor, lost dish boys you cross paths with on birthday celebrations?"

_/That's an interesting question. Let's see. Do I flirt with all my callers?/_ Seriousness filled the line.

Xander choked on a nervous laugh.

Amusement filled Harry's voice. _/That would be a resounding No. I do, occasionally, receive business calls and answering like that would be quite embarrassing. Now, for the second part . . ./_ Harry paused, humming lightly into the microphone.

"Harry!" Xander warned.

Harry sighed before formulating his answer. _/I must admit that you are the only 'poor, lost dish boy' I have encountered, and another birthday celebration of that nature is unlikely, so I could say 'yes'-/_

"Harry?" Xander cried in alarm.

_/But-,/_ he continued, _/as Fate has always made odds work tremendously against me, and even though the odds are severely favorable to you, I must narrow the fields even further./_ A pause came across the line. _/Only you, Alexander Harris. I flirt with you, and you alone, in that manner./_

"God you are sweet." Xander melted at the sentimentality Harry had conveyed over the phone. "What did I ever do to deserve you?" Wonderment and awe seeped into Xander's voice.

_/If memory serves, it was 'Butler-in-Training.'/_ Xander choked. Harry laughed. _/You were yourself./_ Harry affirmed. _/And you demanded the same of me. You have never demanded more./_

Tears of joy threatened Xander at Harry's revelation. "You'd better not be saying I'm easy, Harry Potter!" Xander mock-threatened.

Peals of laughter resounded the airwaves. _/Not remotely!/_ Laughter continued to flavor Harry's voice._ /It's quite difficult with you. I find it hard to treat you in a manner you'll accept. You make it even harder by not expecting certain behaviors from me. Its . . . liberating./_ Harry concluded somberly. _/Although, I have a feeling this is not why you called me./_

Blushing profusely at the direction their conversation had gone, Xander resolved to get it over with. "I had a Eureka moment."

An intrigued _Oh?_ came back.

"Let's do it." Like ripping off a bandaid.

TBC


	3. Cottage Pie

Title: Xander's Green-Eyed Obsession 3/?

Author: Grayswandir

Fandom: BtVS, Harry Potter

Pairing: Harry Potter/Xander Harris

* * *

_/I had a Eureka moment./ _Harry found the statement oddly compelling.

"Oh?"

_/Let's do it./_ All thought froze. _Did Xander just say what I think he said?_ Halfway between choking and gasping, Harry struggled to find the words to reply. _/Harry? . . . Say something./_ A hint of panic tinged the statement.

Swallowing almost convulsively, Harry gathered an answer. "Uh, Xander, perhaps this .. conversation would be best continued in person? One hour, my hotel room? I'll cook." Mentally crossing his fingers, Harry ventured to the nearly full-size kitchenette, glad that this town's idea of a mini-suite included such amenities. _Brilliant Harry, leave yourself with only an hour to prepare._

_/I guess so./_ Uncertainty filled the line.

Harry winced. "Xander! I'm not saying no." Harry used that sharp tone that meant business in any language. He only hoped that would calm nervous minds.

Xander heaved a relieved sigh. _/Ok. One hour. I'll be there./_ A soft click indicated that the receiver had been set down at Xander's end.

Releasing his mobile, Harry stared at the current contents of his fridge. _Well, I hadn't planned on dining in tonight. Better pop out for some quick essentials._ A mild crack filled the air.

* * *

A knock sounded at the door before Xander pushed it open, the gaudy key faub with attached key in his hand. "Lucy, I'm home!"

"You need to find another hobby, Xander Harris." Harry looked out from the kitchenette, an eyebrow arched in amusement.

"I did!" Xander protested. "This really great guy bought me a couple of really sharp, wicked nice swords. He promised to teach me how to fight with them. But he hasn't been around, and I've been a bit busy with random jobs around town. So fail-safe it was."

"Hmm." Harry hummed. "Perhaps I should talk to this guy, he seems a bit unavailable to you. Do you have his contact information?"

"I do and no. I want time with you. Phone not 'llowed." Xander glared. A chuckle resonated from the small kitchen area. Xander relaxed at the pleasant sound and inhaled something decidedly heavenly. "Whatever you're making, it smells good." Xander breathed.

"Cottage Pie." Harry knocked his head in direction of the seating area. "Go, sit. Just need to bring it over."

Xander spying two glasses and a bottle of sparkling cider sat on the counter grabbed them as he passed through to the table Harry had set with other wares. "I've heard of Shepherd's Pie, but not Cottage." Xander commented as Harry trailed behind with the steaming glass cake pan.

"Not surprising." Harry set down the pan on the plain pot holder the hotel furnished. "But they are the same thing. Only difference is that Shepherd's has lamb whereas Cottage uses beef for its meat content. There wasn't any lamb available that I could trust." Harry immediately began serving the recently furnished dish, revealing a mix of beef, onions, carrots, and parsley topped by mashed potatoes and a cheddar cheese cover.

Xander groaned as the smell strengthened on release from its potato covering. Attempting to avoid an embarrassing pounce on the home-cooked goodness, he immediately sprung to action, opening and pouring the cider into the glasses he had brought over. Glasses filled, Xander looked over to his current host? _is that the right term for this?_ locking his dark eyes on Harry's own luminous green ones. Coughing nervously, Xander sat down, afraid of what he might do if he continued to remain standing.

Plates sufficiently laden with food, Harry joined Xander. Looking toward the American, Harry noticed a subtle twitch had developed in his hands. Recalling the same twitch from many a formal dinner at the Dursleys when Dudley was restraining himself as was required by Petunia to remain "normal" by all, Harry laughed. Once more, the two locked eyes. "Go on. Tuck in. Its best served hot."

Green lighted, Xander wasted no time grabbing the first bite from his plate. He went boneless, practically fusing with the seat, groaning in delight. "Oh god!"

"Harry."

"Huh?"

Eyes laughing, Harry looked at Xander. "My name's Harry. I have no desire to be a god."

Sticking out his tongue, Xander continued to clear his plate. Harry followed at a decidedly more sedate pace.

Halfway through the plate, Xander slowed. "When are you headed out again?" _No that was not resignation mixed with hope._

"Tomorrow morning, around ten. I'm headed to Paris before returning to London."

Crushed at Harry's answer, Xander sighed. "So soon? I was hoping we could spend some more time together this visit. Think you might be back by next weekend? There's a bit of tradition for me to watch scary movies and gorge on popcorn for Halloween."

Smiling sadly, Harry hmm-ed. "Sounds wonderful. Unfortunately some of my affiliations are exceedingly into the Halloween spirit. I am required to attend a fancy dress party for the occasion."

Xander blanched. "Fancy dress? Talk about sucking the fun out it. Ball gowns and black ties? Ick."

Harry laughed. "No, sorry. I forgot. Fancy dress is the English term for it. American society would call it a masquerade."

"What are you going as?" Xander asked, curiosity piqued.

The conversation continued on as the two continued to dine.

* * *

"Ok. I know that asking this may be prodding a bull, but I need to know. What brought the sudden desire to have sex?" Harry hoped that a frank conversation would help to lighten the tension surrounding the tail end of the meal.

Sighing guiltily, Xander replied, "I, well, there's this girl. We went out on one date and she somehow thought that made us a couple." Shifting uncomfortably, he continued. "She showed up at my hole in the ground earlier today. She presented a really long speech about getting me out of her head. It sounded like a Sex Ed teacher quoting a study.

"It freaked me." Xander admitted. "Not helped by the fact that she dropped her dress to the floor before starting." Harry choking brought Xander to look directly into his eyes.

"To think I held the cornerstone for psychotic admirers." Harry laughed. A confused look covered Xander's face. "When I was twelve, my best friend's little sister sent me a singing valentine. Apparently my eyes are 'as green as a fresh pickled toad' and my hair 'as dark as a blackboard.' I think it terrified her as much as me." They both laughed at the irony of their misfortune with romance.

A comfortable silence settled on the two males, stomachs full, spirits elated.

Closing his eyes momentarily, Harry coughed before presenting the crux of the situation. "Xander, we both know that you aren't quite ready to 'do it,' at least not with a male." A token protest tried to escape, but Harry stalled him. "Don't try to deny it. Truth be told: I'm not quite ready to either. We can still have fun though." With that, Harry kissed the tip of Xander's nose.

Xander remained still, staring cross-eyed at the place Harry had kissed him. "Wha-? Harry." He turned to see his teasing companion had relocated to the foot of the bed, twenty feet away. Nimble fingers worked the top few buttons of the soft emerald dress shirt that had enhanced the feelings conveyed by Harry's eyes. Those same eyes locked onto Xander, smoldering with wanton desire.

"I still haven't said no." Harry nearly whispered to the Californian.

Xander barely suppressed the hyena mating howl that threatened to burble through his vocal cords. The leap across the room, however, did make it past Xander's control. Xander's back impacting the bed a second later was a double shock.

Harry loomed over Xander, his shirt fully unbuttoned. Harry's nimble fingers made swift work of Xander's own buttoned top. A feathered kiss pressed to Xander's collarbone as Harry slid back the shirt shoulder. Xander gasped as electricity rippled through his shoulder.

Mirroring Harry's movements, Xander happily worked his way down Harry's sternum as Harry continued to strip him of his top. Flipping Harry to the bed, Xander felt slender digits stroke down his back before sliding under the waist of his jeans. Xander arched back as Harry planted kisses down his left side, striking each rib with eerie accuracy.

The two continued to trade kisses and tender touches as the night matured. They lapsed into a sated, sleepy cuddle as the clock clicked over to two.

TBC


	4. Bags, Boxes, and a Bagel

Title: Xander's Green-Eyed Obsession 4/?

Author: Grayswandir

Fandom: BtVS, Harry Potter

Pairing: Harry Potter/Xander Harris

Marking notes: FFN doesn't accept strikeouts so **x-**word**-x** signifies this. Grr!

BBT

The sound of movement woke Xander from his slumber. Crispy clean ironed sheets, soft pillows and a solidly real mattress registered in his thoughts before he even blinked open his eyes. _This is not my basement._ Looking up at the mystery figure, he smiled as Harry ventured about, collecting the few items that he had left out the night before. "Gorgeous."

Harry turned toward the bed. "I didn't mean to wake you." Harry drew Xander into a firm yet chaste kiss.

Xander moaned as Harry released him from the nearly soul searing kiss. "Do you have to leave?" Xander breathed.

A resigned smile slid across Harry's face at the sleepy expression lingering on Xander's features. "Unfortunately. But, that's no reason for you to be rousing."

"Hmm?" Tiny bits of awareness crept into Xander's eyes as he focused on his green-eyed obsession.

"I'll leave the Do-Not-Disturb on the door, settle the bill. You don't have to vacate until one, get some more sleep." Harry chuckled at the dazed look that covered Xander's face. Harry bent forward and planted a tender kiss to Xander's right temple. "Sleep."

Harry smiled as he watched Xander burrow into the pillows, settling back into the warm bed. Xander sniffed. "Don't want you to leave." He whispered before drifting off into soft snores.

BBT

A crescendo of beeps crept into Xander's sleep fogged mind. Bright red digits glared out from a standard hotel room alarm clock. _11:15_, it declared. The beeps continued to announce a wakeup Xander felt was not requested. Stretching out from the comforting embrace of the covers, he hammered away at the clock, hoping for the magic quiet button to trigger. Blissful silence reigned as the snooze button was depressed.

Sighing happily, Xander curled himself back beneath the sheets. Tugging the pillow under his head, he drifted back into a dream state.

_Five minutes later. . ._

Xander groaned as the beeping started again. Growling, he turned his attention to the alarm clock, determined to silence its tones.

"Happy now?" He frowned at the electronic device as he successfully deactivated the alarm. Yawning, Xander flopped back onto the mattress. He sighed happily as he flexed every muscle and stretched every limb from his prone position.

Groaning, disgusted at himself, Xander forced himself upright. Closing his eyes, he took slow deep breaths, enjoying the lack of human humdrum activity that regularly interrupted his lie-ins. Sufficiently relaxed, Xander opened his eyes again. Light drifted through the standard gauzy curtains, illuminating most of the suite. Laughing lightly, Xander spied his clothes neatly folded atop the chest of drawers to the side of the bed. _Massively OCD, Harry be._

Unfolding himself from the bed, Xander reluctantly dragged on his clothing, relishing the freshly laundered scent. _When did he do that?_ Shaking off the mini-wiggins, Xander ventured off to visit the bathroom.

Face freshly washed, Xander woke that crucial bit more. A sappy post-coital expression refused to release his face as he peered into the mirror before him. Tiny bruises lit across Xander's collarbone, highlighting the most fantastic moments that had occurred during the night. "I know no Faith." Grinning, Xander left the tiled room.

Finally awake, Xander noticed two cardboard boxes lay upon the island countertop of the kitchenette. One was recognizably garment box shaped. The other was noticeably smaller. A heavy parchment envelope with a nicely calligraphic _Xander_ printed on the front was propped up against them. A niggling of suspicion scraped against Xander's avid curiosity before being shoved back into the nether regions of thought.

Unwilling to give in to his temptation quite yet, Xander journeyed into the kitchen, hoping to find something edible. _Maybe the Cottage Pie is still good._ Cracking open the fridge, Xander froze. Saran-wrapped to a small paper plate was a plain bagel. Atop the wrapping sat two packets of honey and a note card written in Harry's neat script reading 'Peanut butter beside the toaster.'

Grinning, Xander made expedient work of removing the bagel from its trappings and popping it into the toaster. Reopening the fridge, Xander evaluated the contents. A reusable container held nearly half the original pan of Cottage Pie. Next to that sat half a block of cheddar cheese. Nestled on the lower shelf was a plastic container of ripe Bing cherries, another holding raspberries, and three perfect nectarines.

The toaster popped, interrupting Xander's perusal. A heavy smearing of peanut butter followed by a layer of honey and the sweet-n-salty goodness stood fit for consumption. Grabbing the envelope and the bagel-laden plate, Xander moved to the table for sticky mouthed fun. Taking great care to not cover the envelope in stickiness, Xander carefully extracted the letter contained within. More thick parchment and Harry-handwriting revealed itself. Smiling at the sweet sentiment, Xander read as he ate.

_Xander, _

_It has been nine unbelievable weeks since we  
__first met. It still feels like I'm dreaming. And  
__with this surreal feeling, and the fantastic night  
__we just had, it is difficult to express just what I  
__wish to say. _

_I wish to never wake up. (Yes, I know you were  
__thinking this was a dear john letter. Don't ever  
__think I'll be predictable, Xander Harris!) I enjoy  
__spending my time with you. You never cease to  
__make me feel alive. I also know that you are  
__afraid of what your friends will make of us. One  
__thing that I know from experience: they aren't  
__real friends if they cannot accept any changes  
__you throw their way. _

_Now that I've finished being melodramatic, time  
__for presents. My New York trip didn't take as  
__much time as my boss thought it should, so I  
__spent some time at the shops. Picked up a jacket,  
__some shirts, a couple pair of jeans. For some  
__reason they were all in your size. I hope you like  
__the colours._

_Also, last time I was around, I forgot to give you  
__something. Strictly speaking, it isn't on the  
__market quite yet. But I do have some connections  
__and I want to talk to you when I'm not stateside.  
__My number is already programmed into the  
__**x-**mobile**-x** cellular phone. And the cellular has a  
__Sunnydale number for your friends to call.  
__(Don't fuss over the bill.)_

_Hmm. If you haven't already found it, there is  
__food in the **x-**icebox**-x** refrigerator. Paper bags are  
__beside the sink. Think of me as you sink your  
__teeth into the fresh, ripe, juicy fruits._

_Shite! I've wound myself up. _

_I hope to be back in the area sometime in  
__November but I cannot be firm on a date.  
__Mid-month? I'll call._

_Fondest regards,_

_Harry_

Xander blinked, trying to ignore the watery edges to his vision. _Please, God, let him not be a demon! I don't want this to end!_ Tucking the letter back into its matching envelope, Xander gathered the remains of his breakfast, moving to the presents Harry had mentioned. Eagerly, Xander ripped off the cover of the garment box ignoring the designer logo pressed into the lid. A fall to the floor nearly followed. There, seated inside, was a medium wash Ralph Lauren jean jacket with a matching and twin dark wash pair of carpenter jeans. Three silk dress shirts were nestled in as well. One in dark purple, one black, and one in a chocolate brown.

"Gulp." The extravagance froze Xander. _He can be a demon. As long as he isn't my fairy godfather._

A knocking came from the door. "Housekeeping!" Startled, Xander spied the clock over the stove. _1:05. Shit!_

Another knock sent him scrambling to the door. Yanking it open, Xander gasped out, "Sorry. I lost track of time. Five minutes and I'll be gone. A baggage cart?"

The startled housekeeper directed Xander to the bank of elevators before promising him ten minutes of peace.

Swiping the room key, Xander tore down the corridor to nab a cart before returning. The lack of time forced him to empty the fridge of its precious contents without looking, the peanut butter jar joining in along with the smaller box from the counter.

The garment box and two full paper bags on a baggage cart. Xander laughed at himself as he navigated the cart down to the lobby and out to his car.

BBT

For once Xander was grateful of his move to the basement. A back entrance meant no one asking questions as he unloaded his parcels from the car. The garment box stood out starkly against the aged blankets that made up the covers of his hide-a-bed. The foodstuffs filled his mini-fridge and an entire shelf of his milk crate cabinet. The box with the cellphone faintly screamed to be opened.

"Xander!" _Cue the human humdrum._

Xander sighed. "Yes, mom?"

"Willow's been calling all morning. I'm not a messenger service, young man!"

_Damn._ "I'll tell her." Xander pouted at the interruption to his perfect little Sunday. _Better see what's happening._

BBT

Tuesday, 2pm-ish

"_Xander, go find Buffy." Like the slayer isn't more than capable of kicking Spike's ass. Almost wish I hadn't found that TV._

Knocking rapidly, Xander hoped that Buffy was there. She moved way too fast when she was being avoid-y, or slay-y.

"Xander, I was looking for you. You weren't in your musty basement." Anya. _As if the day hadn't already been ruined enough._

"Have you seen Buffy?" Xander hoped the ex-demon could be of some use.

That how-can-you-possibly-be-interested-in-someone-else sneer lit across Anya's face. "No." A huff. "About what happened. I'm over you."

Sighing, Xander grimace-smiled. "That's great, Anya. I don't have time."

Rapidly moving past the stalker-ish being, Xander proceeded to get his ribs bashed by Spike in a moot attempt to assist Buffy in her fight. _Definitely need to convince Harry to stick around. Sword sounds like a good idea to have at hand._

TBC

A/N: Yay! Finally finished this Buffy episode. Halloween next time.


	5. Halloween Happenings

Title: Xander's Green-Eyed Obsession 5/?

Author: Grayswandir

Fandom: BtVS, Harry Potter

Pairing: Harry Potter/Xander Harris

BBT

_October 30th, Pumpkin Carving in Xander's basement_

Xander frowned at the lack of scare in the pumpkin and turned it toward the slayer. "What do you think, Buff?"

Buffy sighed as she played with the seed laden pumpkin innards. "I was thinking about the life of a pumpkin. Grow up in the sun, happily entwined with others. Then someone comes along, cuts you open and rips your guts out." The whammy definitely needed to visit Parker Abrams, hopefully sometime before the misery set in permanently.

_Diversion time. _"Okay, and on that happy note, got a treat for tomorrow night's second annual Halloween screening. People, prepare to have your spines tingled and your gooses bumped by the terrifying _Fantasia_! _Fantasia_?" What was Xander suppose to do with _Fantasia_?

In typical Oz fashion, the self-same man made the perfect statement. "Maybe it's because of all the horrific things we've seen but hippos wearing tutus just don't unnerve me the way they use to." _If I weren't so depressed about my plans being ruined, I'd be laughing right now._

"_Phantasm_. It was suppose to be _Phantasm_! Stupid video store." _Don't start pouting._

"I thought we were doing the Alph-Delt thing?" Willow asked.

"What ... thing?" Xander couldn't help but be suspicious.

The Buffy blahs rejoined the conversation. "The scary house? Sounds kind of lame."

The king of the campus, well the party-king anyway, elaborated on the not-lameness. "It actually borders on fun. You have to go through the whole scary house maze to get to the party, which is usually worth getting to. Those guys go all out."

"As witnessed last Friday." Smirking Willow was giddy sounding.

"Very true." Oz again.

"There's a party?" _And no one bothered to mention it to me?_ Xander had to wonder if maybe their friendship wasn't as solid as he previously believed. Flashes of that well written letter from Harry blinked at the forefront of his mind.

"We didn't tell you?" Willow sounded sufficiently contrite. _Okay, she's sincere. I suppose I can forgive._

"Nah, it's cool." _Don't lay it on too thick. Have to make them believe._ "You guys got your little college thing. I'm fine. I mean, I got better things to do than tag along to some fraternity." Xander mentally crossed his fingers, hoping no one would call his bluff. After all, _Fantasia_ is a date night movie. Or background music.

"You can come." _Thank you, oh merciful Wil._

"'Kay. But only because I lied about having better things to do." Xander grinned. Now all he had to do was figure out what to wear. _Must be something cool._

Electronic beeping interrupted any further thoughts. _Harry!_ Xander scrambled to the workbench where his cell phone sat. Grinning, Xander answered the way he preferred. "Xander's House of Horrors, we guarantee screams!"

/That is quite the claim./ Harry chuckled. /Someone is going to believe you someday./

"Guess I may be in trouble when that happens." Xander laughed back. "Up early or bed late?"

/Your clock break?/ Harry sounded amused.

"No." Xander stretched out the vowel, turning to spy his watch. _10:57. Where did the time go?_ "Okay, not so early."

/Should I be worried?/ Harry asked, semi-warily. /Who are you playing with tonight?/

_What? Where is-?_ "I happen to be carving pumpkins with Wil, Buff an' Oz." Xander growled. "And who have _you_ been playing with the past week?"

Xander practically heard the wince. /I'm sorry, Xan. I sound like a massively jealous git, don't I?/ Harry sighed. /This party is –grrr– a political nightmare that I have absolutely no desire to attend!/ Harry took a deep breath. /And all I want to do, is see you. Forgive me?/

"Not so much of the mood." Xander's irritation factor hit critical. "Perhaps _after_ the nightmare is finished, and you've calmed." Xander swiftly disconnected the call.

"Paradise lost?"

_Oh shit!_ Xander paled at Oz's deadpan statement. Spinning, Xander felt sweat form upon his face as three sets of eyes trained on him as if he were a germ on a slide under a very precise microscope. "Ahhh-. I-. Uhmm-."

"Since when could you afford a cell phone, Xander?" _Great. Buffy emerges from a grand Buff-funk just in time to pin Xand-man to the pegboard._

"You're not selling drugs, are you Xander?" Willow joined in.

"Wha—No! The phone was a gift. Had it a week." Xander gulped and braced, waiting for the other shoe to drop.

"And you were going to tell us—when?" _Ugh! Some days Buffy needs to listen to herself!_

Xander grimaced. "Sunday. But with Parker; Spike; the Gem: who could find the time?"

"He has a point, Buffy." Willow chimed. "I wanna know one thing, Xander." She paused dramatically. "When do we get your number?"

BBT

_Halloween, 1pm_

"I'll be by to pick it up in an hour, hour and a half. Thank you." Xander hung up. _Alright. Costume's set, time to help Oz with his delivery._ Shrugging on his favorite button-down, Xander prepared to depart.

_Keys. Keys, keys, keys. Where are my keys?_ Xander straightened his collar as he continued to search his dank sanctuary. Movement by the inside staircase forced a jump from Xander. _Deliver me from demons, please god! _"Anya. You really have to get this knocking thing down. How did you -?"

Anya looked slightly uncomfortable. "Your-ah Uncle Rory let me in. Does he always smell like peppermint?"

_This is why I hate my family._ _Thankfully, sarcasm is still a friend. _"The man likes his schnapps. What are you doing here?"

Anya huffed. "We haven't talked. Not once."

_Not now!_ Xander sighed, exasperated. "You said you were over me."

Anya scowled. "You just accepted that? I only said that because I thought that was what you wanted to hear."

Xander winced. _Headache, thy name be Anya._ "Well that's the funny thing about me. I tend to hear the actual words people say and accept them at face value."

"That's stupid," Anya scoffed.

"I accept that." Xander paused. _Maybe I should keep my options open. Harry's been rather overzealous._ "I can't say seeing you falls into the realm of a bad thing."

"Really?" Anya preened. "I thought maybe we could go out tonight, for our anniversary."

_Again? _"Anniversary? Anya, we have to be _dating_ to have an anniversary. One date does not a relationship make. Besides, I already have plans with Buffy, Willow and Oz. It's Halloween, you know."

"I don't understand." Anya frowned.

_Sarcasm rally! _"Well, every October 31st, we mortals dress up in masks–"

Anya interrupted. "No, no. I understand that inane ritual. It's those people. And you continue to associate with them though you share little in common."

Xander zoned out as Anya rattled off a mass of comparisons. _Clueless much?_ Growling, Xander answered the wordless question of _why._ "Those things, the bonds of true friendships transcend the growing pains of graduation and adultness. You wanna see this phenom in action, you can come with me tonight to this party."

Anya bounced a bit as she answered. "You mean, like a date? Is that what this is? Are we dating?"

_Be firm, Xander! _"There are definitely date-like qualities at work here. But it's not a date." _No matter how rocky it is with Harry right now, so not a date._ "You'll need a costume. Dress-up, something scary."

BBT

_Alpha Delta Fraternity 7:30pm_

"Like the tux, Xander." Buffy complimented.

"Bond. James Bond. Insurance. Y'know, in case we get turned into our costumes again I'm going for a cool secret agent guy." _Of course now I'm thinking about _that night _again._ Xander's hands itched to call Harry.

"I hate to break it to you but you'll probably end up cool headwaiter guy."

"As long as I'm cool and wield some kind of power." Xander fought a blush as he ruminated on the various other possibilities.

Buffy turned, headed to the front door of the fraternity. "Oh, its Wil. Medieval Wil. Who are we today?"

Willow bounced happily as she halted before Buffy and Xander, hugging her boyfriend to her side. "I'm Joan of Arc. I figured we had a lot in common seeing as how I was almost burned at the stake and plus, she had that close relationship with God."

_Morbid much?_ Xander peered at a decidedly un-festooned Oz and had to ask. "And you are?" Shifting his over shirt to the left, Oz unveiled a self-adhesive name tag reading _'Hello! My name is GOD.'_ "Of course! I wish I'd thought of that before I put down my deposit. I could've been God."

"Blasphemer."

Xander laughed internally at the comedic-ness of Oz's statement. _I bet Harry would have loved to be here. He never did tell me what he was going as._ A pang struck Xander at the thought of a night with Harry at his side."Oh, yeah. I, ah, invited Anya but she's having some trouble finding a scary costume so she's just gonna meet us there."

"Perfect. Everybody's got a date but third-wheel Buffy."

"Nono. Nonononono. Anya isn't my date." _Oh, God! Why didn't I think about this reaction?_ Xander's face was stricken with horror. The trio launched incredulous looks at Xander. "I—," he groaned. "I felt sorry for her. I kinda rejected her last weekend and she took it a bit harshly so I thought maybe extending a hand in friendship might be, y'know, nice."

Buffy cough-laughed. "Wow, Xand. I didn't think you had it in you."

"Hey!" Xander gasped, indignant. "And a resounding _huh?_ What did you not think I could do?" _I resent that she thinks I can't show some backbone. Cordelia never got to me, until she got to me—but that was after __**years**__ of scratching away at my defenses._

"Stringing along two girls at the same time? Or was it Anya you were arguing with last night?"

Xander frowned as the implication hit a little too close to home for him. "Let's get one thing straight, right now. You had your chance. And I'm ready for a party."

BBT

_Giles' Apartment 8:45pm_

The post crazy-frenzy party was gathered, nestled in the furniture of Giles' living room. A dent was verily being made in the huge bowl of chocolate goodies that had been purchased for the hereto un-presented trick-or-treaters. "Some quality treats here, Giles."

"Please, finish them." Giles groaned.

Buffy was scarfing down candies by the handful. "This is much better. There is no problem that cannot be solved by chocolate."

Willow turned a bit green. "I think I'm gonna barf."

"Except that." Buffy swallowed.

Xander concentrated fully on not fidgeting in his position next to Anya. No one had commented on Anya's costume or on what had occurred earlier that day. _Guess the open of this evening has been forgotten, much like myself. _Unable to stop himself, Xander stared at Anya.

"What?" She half-barked.

Gesturing, he asked, "That's your scary costume?"

Anya looked self-conscious for the first time in Xander's recollection. "Bunnies frighten me." She answered succinctly.

_Ri-ght. Bunnicula frightens me. And the one from 'Holy Grail' scares me._ Xander blinked. _Please tell me they don't actually exist. Not asking ex-demon. Oblivion, much prefered._

"Oh, bloody hell. The inscription." A giggle almost escaped Xander as he heard Giles. For some reason, Xander saw rabid bunny slippers nipping at Giles's heels. _Concentrate on the real, Xand-man!_ Thankfully, the image faded.

"What's the matter?" Buffy fed in the requisite concern.

"I should have translated the Gaelic inscription under the illustration of Gachnar." Giles delivered the book into Buffy's lap.

"What's it say?" Buffy inquired.

"'Actual size.'"

Xander couldn't hold it in. He started laughing hysterically. "Nice punch line there, G-man." He continued to laugh until tears slid down his cheeks. Mildly composed, Xander looked up. Five pairs of eyes stared at him. _Oh, god! Why didn't Harry call? I need to get out of here!_

"Are you alright, Xander?" Buffy frowned, concern coloring her voice.

Swallowing, Xander stood, straightening up his costume, a self-deprecating smile on his face. "I'll be fine, just need to go home. Make a phone call." Silently, he departed the solemn room.

BBT

_Xander's Basement 9:05pm_

Xander sighed. Sitting upright on the foldout, the last vestiges of the cottage pie, nuked and set in his lap, ready to be eaten, he remained still. The cellphone in his hand displayed no missed calls or messages. No hint at any contact after the call the previous night. Desperation warred with despair. Should he call Harry, despite the unreasonable hour, see if he had calmed since they'd exchanged words? Or were they over? Was that the end of it all? _Screw it!_

His finger poised, ready to hit the speed dial, the phone began to ring. "Hello?" Xander answered swiftly, mentally crossing his toes.

/Heyyy./ The thoroughly soused voice of Harry rang across the line.

TBC


	6. Headache Before the Hangover

Title: Xander's Green Eyed Obsession  
Author: Grayswandir  
Fandom: Harry Potter, Buffy the Vampire Slayer

A/N: I sincerely apologize for the last chapter, it was not very cooperative with being nice and was the only fully episodic entries in this fic. Original plot points coming to you shortly.

BBT

"Hello?" Xander answered the cellphone.

/Heyyy./ An inebriated Harry replied. /I-ahh. Mmrrgh. I need to apologize./ Harry groaned in pain.

Xander sighed, hating the idea of Harry drunk at home. _Fitting end to this disastrous night._ "Harry, have you gone to bed yet?"

/Nnnngh. Nooo./ Harry groaned loudly. /Headache won't let me. Neither will the guilt./

Xander laughed. "Harry. The headache is supposed to accompany the hangover, not the drunken daze."

/The, ah, alcohol didn't cause the headache. Err, not by itself. Think it was spike-ed./ Another groan issued across the line.

Xander sighed. _Don't I have enough drunk acquaintances?_ He was loath to count most of his relations as family. Most of them rarely regained sobriety long enough to string together a coherent sentence. "Harry, maybe we should speak later, perhaps after you've gotten some sleep, had some Advil?"

/But-. I-./ Harry protested. /Sorry./ He sobbed. Gasping between sobs, he continued. /Paris, reminded me. Disgusted, fans wretched are. Then I saw _Prophet_./ He sighed.

Over the many conversations Xander had been in with drunk people, this one seemed to be degenerating the fastest in his memory. "O-kay. Let's see if I understood you. Paris bad. You hate fans, I'm guessing due to a preference to AC. And you're a money grubbing profit grabber. Did I get that?"

/Huh?/ Harry groaned into the phone. He took a deep breath. /Nhmm. You're right. Any real-ugh!/ Another groan issued forth. Gasping, Harry half-whispered in agony. /Whatever potions those bloody witches dosed me with were potent./

_Potions? Man they go all out over there._ Xander resigned himself to the idea of this conversation remaining nonsensical. "Harry, whatever you've drunk-imbibed-ingested, whatever it is, you're making absolutely no sense tonight."

An unhappy sigh answered Xander's declaration. /I know. Xander, I am sorry about this morning. I've spent most of the day talking to my associates. I've arranged my schedule so I might spend some time with you. I know this doesn't resolve what happened, but I wish to try./

"No guarantees." Xander warned. He swallowed hard, closing his eyes tightly. "When?"

Harry released a relieved sigh. /Tuesday. I'll take you out to eat and we'll talk./

"About?" Xander prompted.

/Anything. Everything. Whatever you desire./ Harry promised.

_Just what I wanted to hear._ "Alright, Tuesday. But don't think you can just charm your way through this, Harry Potter! I'm not easy!"

A wispy laugh filled the airwaves. /I already knew that./ A light snuffling sound followed, trailed by rhythmic deep breaths.

"Harry?" Xander waited for an answer, fairly certain none were coming. "Sweet dreams, Harry." Snorting, he switched off the phone. _Back to dinner._

BBT

_Tuesday, Harris Residence, 5:30pm_

Harry shifted nervously upon the front porch. Less than four days prior he had made a promise to the basement resident of answers in a drunken rambling. The headache that had lingered the following day made it impossible for him to ignore what he had said that night. He could only hope the questions would remain innocuous. "Okay, you can do this." Bucking his courage, Harry rang the bell. _No backing down now._

An unshaven, slovenly dressed male, perhaps fifteen years Harry's senior, answered the ringing doorbell. Muddy brown eyes traveled up and down Harry's form. He felt dirty from the gaze alone. "No girls here, buddy." The rancid scent of peppermint flavored alcohol with a heavy overlay of licorice forced Harry backward.

"I'm here to pick up Xander. Could you tell him?" Years of watching his Aunt and Uncle play-it-up had finally won out in usefulness.

The unwashed man squinted at Harry before yelling over his shoulder. "Xander! A British dude is here for you!" The man retreated back inside, leaving Harry to stand outside the threshold. _Lovely manners._ Sighing, Harry moved to the pair of steps that led to the concrete walkway.

Lost in thought, Harry nearly drew his wand as a hand slid past his own. "Wish you had told me we were eating fancy tonight." Frowning, Harry turned to see Xander. The younger man was wearing the clothing that Harry had gifted barely a week before. _Gorgeous._

"You're dressed just fine." Harry smiled. Gesturing at the car parked just opposite the gnarled tree growing in the front yard, he asked. "Shall we?" Harry laughed at the overly enthusiastic bounce down the walk. Xander froze upon seeing the unveiled vehicle. A shiny metallic blue Jaguar convertible. He stood transfixed, awed by the beautiful blue spectacle.

Wrapping his arms around Xander's waist, Harry chuckled into his ear. "You wanna drive, or should I?" He whispered.

"Gyah." Xander answered speechlessly, grabbing Harry's wrists in a near vain attempt to remain upright.

"Are you saying I should drive as I know where we're going?" Harry mused. Another non-word and a vibrating nod in reply. "Alright. Get in." Xander launched forward, barely opening the passenger door before seating himself.

BBT

Xander's lithe frame vibrated in nervous energy as Harry casually strode to the maître de of the fanciest Italian restaurant within twenty miles of the Sunnydale city limits. _You lying fink! I am so not dressed for this place!_ Knowing the place by reputation, and Cordelia's schmooze fest speeches, Xander was well aware of the black tie requirement and that lack of said tie would keep him out, not to mention the jeans he sported. Feet moving of their own accord, Xander drew even with Harry at the podium.

"Right this way, Mr. Potter." The stuffed shirt playing host gestured past the velvet rope. In shock, Xander followed, waiting for the world to implode with him at the epicenter. The ground remained firm as the couple were lead to a corner booth, surrounded by empty tables at least two deep in all directions. A duet of candles were lit on the table, glasses of ice water already laid out. Sitting down, Xander gulped as the host pulled the neatly folded cloth napkin off its place setting and laid it in his lap. Turning to Harry, he did the same. "Would you care to look at the wine list, sir?"

"The house red a fine drop?" Harry asked. A curt nod. "That will do." The host departed.

A suspicious frown drew across Xander's face. Stretching out toward Harry, he whispered harshly. "Did you lie to me about your birthdate, Harry?" Harry shook his head. "Then why are we getting wine? Last I checked you were 19, not the requisite 21."

"Irrefutable law of society: Wealth speaks." Harry spoke off-hand, eyes roaming the menu fare. Feeling that unmistakable sense of eyes concentrating upon his form, Harry sighed. "I don't normally exercise that particular law. I find it distasteful for the most part." Locking eyes with Xander, seeing the _Why now?_ question in his eyes, Harry continued. "I figure I've paid extra to keep this section cleared out I may as well indulge. You may want to decide before the waiter returns with the wine."

Smirking, Xander turned his attention to the menu, hoping the decision making would assist him in tamping down his giddiness at the entire idea of VIP treatment. _This is so different from dating Cordy. He's modest._ The waiter showed with the wine Harry had ordered via the host, setting up that funny little ice bucket and pouring two glasses expertly. _Definitely different. No hysterical girl-screams._

"Ready to order, or would you like a few minutes?" The waiter's eyes darted between both of them.

Xander tapped his foot nervously against Harry's own. He chuckled. "I think we're still deciding. But, an appetizer?" Xander nodded in response. "The mozzarella fritta and some roasted mushrooms."

"Very good." The waiter departed.

Hefting his wine glass to his lips, Harry took a small sip. "Not bad." Setting the glass down, he turned to Xander. Solemnly, Harry inquired. "How was Halloween?"

"Not as uneventful as I would like, but also not as eventful as they have been in the past." Xander admitted. Setting aside the menu, Xander frowned as Harry took another sip of the wine. "Should you be drinking? You know how my family is and that last call was not your best."

Harry winced. Raising a finger, he nodded. "I can explain that." Swallowing in disgust, Harry continued. "I had received a post about Andromeda falling ill; news of Ron and Hermione trying to raise issues of my competency; and the bitter man I work for neglected to tell me that the Halloween party I was to attend was mostly political. I was stressed out from crappy friends and _brill_ memories and I took it out on you. And then I forgot about political functions." Harry paused, embarrassed. "They tend to involve the real liquor."

Xander snickered. "You were sloshed." Harry sent him a withering glare. Sniffing lightly, Xander cleared his throat. "Andromeda: Teddy's grandmother, right?" Harry nodded.

The waiter interrupted the deep thoughts of the table, laying two plates in the center. "Have you sirs decided?"

"Oh, yes." Harry nodded. "Rigatoni Abruzzi."

"Baked tortellini." Xander put in. The waiter exited once more. "Your old friends challenging your ability to provide for your godson?" Harry nodded miserably. Grabbing Harry's hand, Xander forced him to look at him, eye-to-eye. "You are a wonderful man, Harry Potter. You have a pure heart and will do what is best no matter the situation. Don't ever let those pathetic people force you to believe otherwise."

The table remained silent, save for the clicking of silverware, until the main course arrived.

BBT

Xander laughed. "Okay, so embarrassing moments in Harry-world. What is the most outrageous pet you've ever owned?"

"A while back, last August I think, I managed to acquire a pet snake." Harry answered after a moment of whimsical thought crossed his face.

"Hate to break it to ya, Harry, but a snake isn't that outrageous of a pet." Xander mused. "Not my personal choice of pets, but not exactly out of left field."

"Well, yes." Harry admitted, scraping his fork through the sauce that remained on his plate. Turning his eyes back to Xander, he continued. "It's more _how_ I ended up with the snake that's outrageous." Xander's eyes gleamed, screaming out _'go on'_. Chuckling, Harry began. "I was in Singapore, talking to an interested party about a business venture over lunch. As the meal wound down, we came to a mutual agreement—the normal routine. An excited acquaintance of his had shown up and decided that a celebration of glad tidings was in order. I, in my ignorance, accepted the invitation for a 'special treat'. A tray of glasses and a pitcher were brought out to the table.

"Then I heard it. A snake handler with a beautiful king cobra in hand walked up to the table. The waiter who had brought out the glasses pulled out a very sharp knife as the snake was positioned over the pitcher. I screamed, 'Wait!' Everyone in the café froze and I was pissed! Apparently drinking snake blood is a regional delicacy and drinking a venomous snake's blood is the pinnacle of excitement, the idea that one could die from drinking it.

"I wouldn't have any part of the ritual. In apology for the outburst, and the misunderstanding, I offered to pay for the snake, and take it off their hands." Harry took a sip from his wine glass before finishing. "And now, it seems, I am gifted with another pet snake after every successful business venture, thankfully not every one is poisonous."

Xander sat torn between laughing uproariously and face planting. Deciding neither would be quite apropos, he sighed closing his eyes. "Exactly how many does that equate to?"

Harry sheepishly scratched the back of his neck as he answered. "Last count? Thirty-seven." He laughed at the gawp Xander gave. "Not all of them have survived. A few died due to poor health. Some eaten by the others."

Xander merely shook his head. Quirking his brow, he met Harry's eyes. "Just what I needed, a boyfriend with cannibalistic pets. You aren't joshing me are you?" A head shake in reply. "As long I never have to feed them."

"Deal." Harry laughed. "So. With my pets and my godson, my island-hopping occupation, do you still think we have a chance?"

Before Xander could gather a response, the waiter returned, retrieving the emptied plates. "Dessert, sirs?"

Harry nodded. "Tiramisu, and coffee, please." A quiet _'Right away'_, and the waiter was gone with the dirty dishes.

Xander stared at Harry, trying to decide what the best answer should be. _I can deal with the snakes and the job. And his godson sounds like a hoot to have around. _Adopting a serious pose, Xander mused. "The kid, snakes and career could be doable. But only if you are staying around for a while. I'm ready for my friends to really know you, you them. These five minute meets won't do it. Can you do that? When do you have to leave again?"

The dessert delivery momentarily interrupted the pair. Heaving a sigh, Harry peered across the table. "I don't know, Xander. Those seem pretty hefty demands. I have to be elsewhere come the sixth, and after that I can't be sure."

"Thursday?" Xander half-squeaked, unhappy about Harry's nonchalant attitude. Angry, Xander fumed. "You said you'd cleared your shed-dul, Harry!"

"And I did." Harry shrugged. A twinkle sparked in his eye as he met Xander's glaring orbs. "I have nowhere else to be until the sixth, of January." Turning to the dessert, Harry cut a piece off with his fork, offering it up to Xander.

Numbly, Xander accepted the coffee flavored morsel. "You bastard."

"My parents were quite happily married, thank you."

Laughter erupted from the corner booth once more.

TBC

A/N: See, see? They're still together!


	7. To Boldly Go

Title: Xander's Green-Eyed Obsession  
Author: Grayswandir  
Fandom: Harry Potter, BtVS  
A/N: Story rating has been changed back to T, all explicit content will be offsite

Chapter Warning: Lemon content offsite (~1100 words)

BBT

The trip from the restaurant back to Harry's current suite was filled with laughter and anecdotal phrases. Pulling up outside the hotel, they grinned at each other. Hastily, both boys jumped out of the car, running around the back of the car, racing for the elevator. Absently, Harry cast an anti-theft and anti-damage charm at the vehicle.

Harry hit the call button for the elevator, watching as the level indicator started to change. The elevator crawled down the shaft from the sixth level. The elevator lobby stood empty save the two males. The noxious sound of muzak filled the air.

Xander took slow, deep breaths, staring at the calm demeanor of his boyfriend. _Tonight. It's going to happen tonight!_ No more waiting. So much had been revealed that night, it was time to surrender fully. Three months was a long enough wait. _Now to get Harry ready._ Smirking, Xander slid his left arm around Harry's waist before shifting it higher, settling his hand on his shoulder blade. Those vibrant emerald eyes darkened to evergreen, Harry's breath hitching in need.

Harry pressed forward, both groaned as their groins touched. Xander's eyes slid shut as he panted from the feeling. Grinning, Harry swept his lips across Xander's own. Xander gasped, allowing Harry's tongue entrance. Sweeping across Xander's palate and twisting with its companion, they shared their breaths. The need to breathe crescendo-ed, forcing the lip lock to end.

Pulling the slightest distance apart, Xander opened his eyes. Harry stood stock still, panting. His hands flown directly into Xander's dark brown locks, grasping at the sides of his head. His eyes were twitching under closed eyelids. His entire body shuddered with the power of his panting breaths. _Absolutely beautiful._ The ding of the elevator arriving momentarily drew his attention from the being stood before him. Determined to avoid anyone else laying claim to this particular view, Xander steered them onboard. "What floor?" Xander whispered.

"Hmm." Harry hummed, opening nearly black eyes. The dazzled gaze slid to the elevator panel. "Ninth."

Depressing the button, Xander cheered on the elevator ding, indicating the doors were about to close. Diving back into his current mission driving Harry into a lusty haze, Xander dove back into kissing every breath from the British body. Pushing Harry against the wall, Xander slowly slipped the buttons from their holes on the plum colored waistcoat before following suit on the red dress shirt beneath it. Harry reciprocated, unbuttoning the black silk shirt. A hot hand slid beneath the silk, rubbing across Xander's still slim abdominal muscles. _Not fair!_ Growling, Xander jumped to the other side of the elevator car.

Harry remained where Xander had positioned him, his hands clasped tight to the darkly stained wood hand rails. The plum and red cloth of Harry's clothing draped lovingly from his slender shoulders, revealing the lightly tanned torso that hid a litany of fine white scars, both front and back. He was always vague about the origin of them, but Xander knew. Those scars marked a troubled childhood, an abusive one. He could never fault Harry entirely for his tentative steps toward trust. It amazed Xander how much Harry would surrender of himself every time he made a friend. _I wonder how he'll take the Slayer and vampires and demons._ Tamping down the thought, he'd have to talk to the Scoobies before he could do that, Xander approached once more. An arm stopped him from fully closing the distance.

A husky chuckle issued from Harry. "Suggest you stop until we get to the room. I really don't feel like having to recover anything on the way." They both thanked the fates when the elevator stopped, releasing them from the confines and into the corridor of the ninth floor. Staggering the slightest bit, they drew up to the suite entrance. Harry impatiently shoved the keycard into the reader, glad for the simpler entry method on this occasion, uncertain if he would have had the presence to turn a standard key. The blinking green light barely lit before the door was shoved open. Xander immediately pressed against him, barely allowing Harry to retract the card from the slot.

Harry stumbled as Xander pressed him back into the wall beside the door. Hands tugged shirts from pants and caressed stomachs and backs. "Stop." Harry half-hissed. Drawing back, Xander's eyes were glazed with lust and confusion. "The door." Harry breathed. Xander stood back, hands still attached to Harry's form. Turning in Xander's arms, Harry threw shut the deadbolt and slotted the safety chain for good measure. Drawing back around, Harry caressed Xander's cheek, leading him up the short staircase to the master bedroom.

**(Lemon edited out for content)**

BBT

The two males laid tightly to each other in the blissful aftermath of love making. Xander laid flat on his back, Harry curled into his side. "Think I could get use to that." Xander remarked, trailing patterns across Harry's back, tracing a few random scars.

"Hmm. Yeah, me too." Harry murmured, planting kisses along Xander's shoulder. Harry went limp, purring as he nuzzled Xander's neck.

Xander laughed, squeezing Harry into his side. "That tickles!" Instantly, vicious eskimo kisses assaulted his neck forcing Xander to squawk, shoving Harry away. "Stop it!"

Harry chuckled, pulling the blankets up from the foot of the bed. "Okay, I'll stop." Settling back to his previous cuddle, he whispered. "Until next time." Xander groaned, glaring at the jet-black crown.

"You like to torment me, don't you?"

"Not torment. Tease. Much easier to clean up the aftermath that way." Xander lightly cuffed the back of Harry's head. A sharp laugh answered the action. "You can't argue that logic."

_Not really, no._ Xander smiled, content to leave the argument lie.

BBT

_The following morning…_

Xander groaned on waking. Harry laughed, running his fingers from Xander's miniature widow's peak, down the bridge of his nose and over his pouting lips to tap at his chin. "Why are you so awake?" Xander mumbled, glaring into bright green eyes.

"I don't sleep that much." Harry shrugged before zooming in for a kiss. Xander grudgingly complied. Breaking off shortly after, Harry smiled. "I can have breakfast ready in ten. Think you'll be able to join me at the dining table?"

Xander sighed, his eyes sliding shut. "I suppose." Harry laughed, giving Xander a quick peck before running through the small foyer to the other side of the suite. _Right. Forgot this was a two room suite._ Knowing Harry as well as he did, Xander threw his legs over the edge of the bed, reluctantly rising with the morning. Jumping into the shower for a quick rinse, Xander smiled, mildly regretting that the two of them had foregone bathing in the Jacuzzi tub the night before. _Maybe later._

Toweling himself dry, Xander wandered back into the bedroom. _Harry!_ Xander laughed at the neat freak nature his boyfriend embodied. The bed was remade into the original picture perfect state it had been on entry. Sitting atop it was a stack of clothing with a note 'You're late! Better hurry before I eat it all.' _Never happen, Harry._ Trading the towel for clothing, Xander padded off into the other end of the suite. A smaller bathroom and a murphy bed greeted Xander first as he followed the sweet smell from the kitchen. A living room, complete with electric fireplace, lead to the dining and kitchen area.

Harry stood at the range top, spatula in hand. "Took ya long enough." Harry expertly flipped two pancakes from the griddle onto an already dangerously high stack. Turning off the gas, Harry gathered up the plate, walking through to the simple dining table. "Are you joining me?"

Two place settings were laid out along with a trio of carafes and half a dozen restaurant style syrup servers. "Prepare much?" Xander laughed as he sat down. "Wah?" Staring at the pancakes, Xander was stunned. "Chocolate chip?"

Smiling, Harry grabbed two pancakes for himself, pouring some boysenberry syrup on top. "I wanted something sweet." Pouring out a glass of iced water, Harry started eating. Shrugging, Xander joined him.

Slathering his own short stack with regular syrup, Xander moaned as the first bite melted in his mouth. "If I didn't already know I loved you, these would definitely do it." Harry laughed, warmth filling Xander. He loved seeing those emerald orbs sparkling in mirth. "How did you get to be so good at this cooking thing?"

"Thought I told you?" Xander shook his head. A pained look crossed Harry's face. Xander opened his mouth, sensing a sad tale. Harry shook his head, halting him. "At my Aunt's place, it was expected that I cook the meals. If it was elaborate or a family favorite, I was left undisturbed. Encouraged me to expand my horizons as often as possible."

"Shouldn't that keep you from wanting to cook?" Xander frowned.

Harry shrugged. "It's peaceful." Taking a bite from his plate, Harry sought the right question to shift the melancholy atmosphere. "Have any plans for the day?"

Sensing the finality of the subject, Xander answered. "I start a new job today."

"Oh?" Harry asked, interest piqued.

"Yeah, I'm working up on the campus. Over at the pub." Xander replied. Then sheepishly, added the clincher. "As the bartender."

Harry doubled over, laughing. "Didn't you mention something about age restrictions to me last night?"

"Shut-up!" Xander groaned. Glaring as the laughing continued unabated, Xander growled. "So what are your plans for the day?"

Taking a sip from his water, Harry swallowed before answering. "Well, thought I should go flat shopping, I don't care much for hotels in the long term. Any suggestions on locations?"

Xander frowned, crooking his head. "Gladly, if I knew what a flat was."

Harry blushed. "Apartment. I meant to say apartment."

"Oh, sure." Xander grinned.

BBT

_Sunnydale Campus Pub, shortly before Xander's lunch break_

Xander groaned, wondering why he thought this job would be fun and easy. All those grubby hands and screeching voices. Shuddering, he turned to clear off the bar counter. _One more night, then I'll decide._ Spying a perky coed, talking to her friends, Xander saw an opportunity for fun. "Rough day?" Xander flicked his zippo behind the chatting female.

The female turned around, a plastic preppy smile on her face. "Nah, it's been super! We've just accepted Melody's pledge and made her an official sister of Beta Delta Gamma. And our pins arrived today. I designed it myself!"

_Sorry I asked!_ Xander groaned internally at the chipper attitude the girl had, and the pathetic little piece of plastic she displayed. "You are so sharp!" _Feed the patron drivel, tips are made of this._

"Hey, Paula, are you keeping this fine bartender from his duty? A man's gotta make a living." A young unremarkable man came up to the bar, interrupting the budding conversation. The look on his face was unmistakably the thou-art-better-than-you look. _Nice try buster! Cordelia was much better at it than you._

"It's alright."

Xander nearly growled at the immediate dismissal as the male drew the attention of the, admittedly, vapid sounding girl. "I-I-I said it's all right. I'm due for a break." _Damn! Did I really have to sound so lame?_

That look of utter contempt fell upon Xander. "Oh, so what were you discussing? Maybe we could all join."

"Be nice." _Score one for the bartender. Fratly boy, zero._

Mr. Tallish and Plain feigned hurt. "What?"

"Ahh, forget it." _Not worth the possible buck._

"No, no, no." That nasty look changed from contempt to a puckish mischievousness. "I rudely interrupted and it sounds like you two were having quite the meeting of minds . . . possibly debating the geopolitical ramifications of bioengineering. You have a take on that?"

"The theory of selective reproduction is sound," a British lilt interceded, "however the application continues to be quite lacking in smarts." Xander grinned as the two turned to face his boyfriend. Between the time Harry had dropped him off at home to gather his bartender disguise and his entrance to the pub, Harry had donned his dress-to-impress clothing. He sidled up to the bar, forcing the ingrate to turn again. "Severe restriction of the gene pool; resulting in genetic failures due to inbreeding; further resulting in the eventual collapse of the bioengineered community. Tends to be the norm."

Xander laughed at the dumbfounded expressions held by the two college students. _That is what I call magic! _Pouring out a tall glass of 7-Up, Xander handed it to his shining knight. "Grab a table, I'll be on break in a few."

Harry smiled, picking up the offering. In one last retreating salute, he added to his minor monologue. "I believe Hitler's opening gambit in bioengineering was a pivotal motivator of the events of World War 2. Thanks for playing."

Xander smirked as the two coeds focused back on him. "I have beer. Would you like some beer?" He always enjoyed the effect Harry had on the unsuspecting masses. They never seemed able to reply. _Gotta find out how he does that._

"Pitcher of Black Frost." The male responded while the female, still drooling, asked the really stupid question. "Who was that?"

Smacking the pitcher onto the bar top, Xander replied. "Him? That would be my boyfriend." Tending to the funds for the beer, Xander announced to his boss about his lunch break, receiving a nod in reply. Doffing the apron, he headed out to join Harry, dragging a moping Buffy behind him from her seat at the far end of the counter.

Dropping Buffy into the empty side of the booth, Xander scooted in beside Harry. Xander sighed, seeking out Harry's hand below the table, squeezing it in apology. He turned to his blond friend. "Rough day?" The wilting glare answered well enough. "Wanna talk about it?"

She sighed. Looking to Xander's left, she nodded greeting to Harry. "Mister Green Eyes." He chuckled in response. Turning back to Xander, Buffy responded. "It's just that Parker's problem with intimacy is that he can't get enough of it. And I knew it!" She planted her head against the tabletop. "I'm a slut!"

"I find that highly unlikely." Buffy lifted her head, unused to hearing a British accent from someone so young. Harry blushed slightly at the attention. "If I understand correctly, Parker is a sex-crazed fiend and if you were a slut, you would have another three boyfriends by now."

Buffy crooked her head, wondering why the green-eyed devil was there. "Why are you here? I thought you were just a friend of Xand's, dropping off some massively indulgent gifts. And how do you know so much about me and Parker?"

"I don't, it just sounds familiar." Harry shrugged, settling against the wall. "If you want something to eat, Xander, you should order soon."

_Lovely, Harry. You hit the Buffy radar. And ignored the important question._ Xander laughed, shaking his head. _Ah well, had to happen._ "This a peanut-only pub, no food of any quality."

Harry groaned, pulling forward to rest his head on Xander's shoulder. "I'm a wretched boyfriend. Would you like me to get you something?" Xander shook his head, still laughing. "You should have told me earlier! Stupid pub should not have the Welsh flag on display if it's not going to have pub grub!" Xander continued to laugh, almost roaring at the confused expression Buffy pointed his way. "Stop laughing!" Harry growled. No effect. Tugging his hand from Xander's grasp, Harry shoved him to the end of the bench.

"Hey!" Xander squeaked, barely holding in the boiling laughter. Seeing the pouting lips and hang dog expression, he started laughing once more. Grasping Harry's head with both hands, Xander gave in to the urge he had had since Harry first walked up to the bar. Pressing his lips to the pouting expression, Xander closed his eyes. Harry moaned, his lips growing pliant before slackening, parting in panting breaths. Xander pulled back as Harry went limp, grinning.

"You're evil!" Harry murmured, eyes closed as he slumped back into the wall.

"So not fair!" Buffy groaned. Xander looked at the slayer, wondering if she was even processing what was going on. Shaking slightly, she pointed at Xander. "Y-y-you? A-and him? To-to-together?" Xander nodded. "H-how? Wh-when?" She growled slightly. "When were you going to tell us and how long have you been together?"

Xander shirked back from the infuriated expression. "We've been together for three months. And it never seemed like the right time what with your roommate, Harmony, Spike, Parker." _Not that you can really say anything about this. Last year ring any bells?_ Harry wasn't like Angel, no sir.

"So-o, Halloween?" Xander nodded. "Oh." Buffy deflated. Standing from the table, Buffy wandered off into the crowd, walking in the general direction of the exit. Before she managed more than a step, Xander heard her mutter. "Boyfriend? So not fair."

"I think we broke her." Harry mused, watching as Buffy was stopped by a group of males, including the one he had met earlier that night.

TBC

Post A/N: so unhappy with where this chapter went, too much filler canon content. On the upside: this is now my longest and most popular story ever! Thank you all for reading!


	8. Loca Xander?

Title: Xander's Green-Eyed Obsession  
Author: Grayswandir  
Fandom: Harry Potter, BtVS

BBT

_Ugh! All these places and not one looks good._ Harry sighed as he smacked the apartment complex pamphlets onto the coffee table. The suite door opened near silently, admitting Xander. "I'm in the living room." Harry called out. The sound of footsteps grew close. Harry turned, yawning, stretching his arms out over the back of the loveseat. "Hey, stranger. Going my way?"

Xander laughed, depositing his apron next to the discarded flyers. "You are so cheesy!" Leaning over, Xander placed his hands on the back of the sofa, one each side of Harry's head. Ducking down, his lips a hair's breadth from touching Harry's own, he whispered, "I think maybe _you_ go _mine_." Pressing forward, Xander's slightly chapped lips slid against Harry's moist ones. A moist tongue darted out from those moist lips, forcing entrance into Xander's own mouth. Xander moaned, drawing out from the tangle. "And _I'm_ evil?" Xander glared into mischievous green eyes.

A Cheshire grin lit Harry's face. Patting the opposite cushion, he scooted forward. "Come, sit." Xander silently acquiesced, wrapping his arms around Harry as he settled himself into the loveseat. Harry smiled, relaxing back into Xander's arms. Closing his eyes, Harry sighed as Xander squeezed him about the middle. "I'm sorry I out-ed you to Buffy. I thought she knew."

Xander chuckled, brushing his lips upon Harry's forehead. "It's alright. I was being cowardly. On the upside, it'll be a few days before she finishes processing. She left the pub rather drunk." Harry snorted, kissing the underside of Xander's chin. Xander groaned, head thumping down on the back of the cushioned seat. "Minx."

Harry smiled, staring at Xander's profile. _Gorgeous._ Harry loved the way the light played across Xander's features. _Sweet Merlin, I love this man! _Reaching up, Harry pulled Xander back upright, pecking him sideways on the lips. "You hungry?"

"Mmm. Famished." Xander hummed, locking eyes momentarily.

Harry gently pried Xander's hands free of the stranglehold they held him in, releasing Xander to flop into the loveseat. "I'll make you something." Trotting off to the kitchen, Harry thought on what to make.

"Something simple!" Xander yelled, as Harry opened the refrigerator. Harry squawked turning to face Xander, indignation coloring his face. "What?" Xander asked, innocently. A sweltering glare trained on the American male as Harry crossed his arms. "You must admit: you do tend to do elaborate _a lot_."

Harry continued to glare. _Only because you look so very scrumptious when you eat!_ The look of massive appreciation and desirous bliss that lit Xander's face with every bite never failed to warm Harry to the core. "I can do _simple!_" Harry crooked a brow. "I merely prefer not to."

Xander groaned, flopping back from his scrutiny of Harry in the kitchen. "In this country, this is considered torment. So 's you know!" Uproarious laughter emanated from the kitchen as Harry wandered about his business. Xander sighed, chuckling in return. Shaking his head, he glanced at the contents of the coffee table. "Oh, hey! How did the hunt go? Anything good?" Flipping the pamphlets over, Xander spied numbers and square footages and little notes about the landlords and their attitudes. _'Money-grubbing pious arse with delusions of stature. HALITOSIS!'_ Xander snickered. "Judging by the notes I would say not so well."

"Don't get me started!" Harry groaned. "Some of those people need a good kick in the arse!" Sighing, he exited the kitchen, a plate stacked with sandwiches and a tall glass of milk in hand. "And now presenting, per his majesty's request: something simple." Setting the glass and plate before Xander's seat, Harry smiled. "Toasted cheese!"

Xander laughed upon seeing the sandwiches. "Alright. You _can_ do simple. Now, Minx, come over here and help me eat them! You made too much." Harry happily complied, curling up with his feet on the cushions right up to Xander's left side. Sliding off the top sandwich, Xander handed one half-wedge to Harry before starting on his half. Xander scarfed down his half and started on another before he focused on his impish partner. Harry had barely nipped off a bite of his sandwich half, munching half-heartedly. Rubbing his hand up and down Harry's left side, Xander couldn't resist asking. "Penny for your thoughts?"

"Hmm?" Long eyelashes fluttered about, before vibrant green orbs locked with Xander's own eyes. Harry swallowed his mouthful. An adorable frown lit his lips and brow. "Sorry?"

Xander kissed Harry across the brow, waiting for the tender flesh to slacken. Hearing a sigh, Xander pulled back. "You were a million miles away. Care to share?"

Harry smiled, closing his eyes as he breathed deep. "On a lark, I stopped by an estate—err, realtor. The fl-apartments around here are small and strangely expensive, so I thought I'd see what the going rate for purchasing property was. Surprisingly, I can buy a house, at least partially furnished, on a minimum of three acres of land, for the same price as six months' rent. Bit strange, don't you think?" Harry opened his eyes, gazing into Xander's closed expression. "Something wrong?"

"Not wrong." Xander hedged. He squirmed as Harry directed an amused, brow raised smirk. "It is strange. I know why. I just—; I can't tell you the reason without talking to the Scoobies." He watched as Harry's head dropped, another nibble taken from the chilling sandwich wedge. "Hey!" Xander grabbed Harry's chin, turning green eyes to look into his own. "The secrets I hold, not mine. I can't tell you without betraying them. I promise, I will talk to them."

Harry pushed forward, closing his eyes and pressing his lips to Xander's. Light pressure and release, followed with a couple more kisses, less pressure each time, before pulling back just enough to speak. "We all have secrets, Xander." He whispered, eyelids twitching with the desire to open. "Secrets are fine, as long as they are safe to keep. I have mine. And I sincerely hope that none of mine will ever cause you harm." _Hopefully the distance from regular wizard populations will prevent any such event._ Harry sighed, opening his eyes to stare into the brown eyes before him. Grinning, Harry continued. "However, as my luck is the Devil's own, I swear that should my secrets ever tempt to risk your safety, I will reveal them with all due haste." _I'll deal with Teddy's affairs when it comes down to that._ Harry nearly laughed at his own internal optimism.

Xander mock-glared. "Y'know, you push the understanding button much more and I just might do something crazy."

"Crazy, huh?" Harry smirked, deciding to move so he straddled Xander's legs on the sofa. "I'll have you know that my definitions for crazy are rather skewed. So if you do, in fact, 'do something crazy', you may have to tell me." Xander groaned as Harry nipped his way across his neck, sucking hard on his Adam's apple. Growling, Xander forced Harry to release his neck before pressing his lips in a bruising kiss against Harry's own.

BBT

Harry grinned as he surveyed the nearly perfectly smooth planes of creamy skin laid out before him. The smooth surface was interrupted by about a dozen pink and red bruises, one a slender shade away from black. _Have to be more careful._ He frowned, licking the dark bruise, pouring an ounce of his magic into healing the damage. Watching as the redness faded to a more pleasant shade, he continued his licking ministrations, lavishing each of the tiny bruises with a lick, kiss, and a blow. Low moans, sharp, hitching breaths, and the arching back answered to the attention. Chuckling as Xander continued to refuse waking, Harry kissed his way north, stopping to peck at one perky nipple. A groan issued from under his lips. Sliding one hand down under the sheets and beneath a slender hip, caressing a firm arse-cheek, the other hand wrapped behind Xander's head as Harry plastered his front to Xander's. Laying perfectly still, Harry squeezed the firm rump beneath him, waiting for those brown eyes to view the world.

A deep breath attempted to dislodge Harry from his position. As it failed to do so, a corresponding groan followed. "Is it morning already?" Xander's eyes remained closed.

Harry laughed. "Yus!" He yipped out before clamping his lips to Xander's, grasping tightly to the soft hair at the back of his head. Xander groaned, submitting to the questing tongue as he drew his hands around Harry's waist. The plundering tongue caressed Xander's palate before retreating to do a quick swipe of pearly whites. Harry licked the left corner of Xander's lips as he withdrew from the kiss.

Growling, Xander opened his right eye, glaring at the bright green eyes even with his own. "Always on, aren't you?" Harry's answering chuckle forced Xander to groan. "Well. Guess I have to find the off switch." Harry yelped as Xander rolled the both of them over. Holding himself aloft, Xander exchanged smiles with Harry's own prone form. Taking a deep breath, Xander hmm-ed. "Now where do I start?" Harry laughed as Xander attacked his neck with kamikaze kisses.

_Ring. Ring._

Both males groaned, Harry in particular. _Not even a week._ Sighing, Harry grew limp. "I'd better get that." Xander obligingly moved aside, releasing Harry from the bed.

Forcing himself upright, Harry grabbed a pair of jeans and the bleeping mobile phone before wandering off to the living area. Spying the number on the display, Harry growled before connecting the call. "Potter."

/Your relationship solid now?/ A snarky voice came across the line.

"Not. Yet." Harry sniped back. "Who screwed up?"

A dry chuckle answered Harry's query. /As hard as it may be for you to believe me, Potter, you are not the only one capable of a follow through./

"Cute." Harry laughed sarcastically, as he slid his legs into his jeans. "So this is a social call? Short on witty repartee?" _If you really think I'm falling for that weak statement…_

/Fine./ The caller growled. /Draco fouled up the negotiations in Buenos Aires./

"He would bollocks up an affair over excrement." Harry snorted. Punching one of the decorative pillows on the couch, he sighed, feeling the headache descend. "Are they still speaking with us, or has the situation gone permanently pear?"

/They'll still speak with you. No one else./

"Lovely." Harry moaned as a strong pair of hands massaged his shoulders. Harry's eyes slid shut involuntarily as he savored the sensations those circular motions caused as they traveled down his spine. Rocking slightly, Harry knew he needed to finish before his boss grew antsy. "When?"

/Monday. 1300 GMT./

"I'll be there." Harry swiftly disconnected the call before he could be roped into anything else. Setting the phone aside, Harry relaxed against the couch back, indulging in the moment. _Oh, he's good!_

"Think I found off." Xander commented; his voice dry and dull. "Kinda disappointed. Thought it would be harder to find."

"Oh no you didn't!" Harry reluctantly pulled out of the massaging hands to face Xander. "Someone else hit the off; you have to find your own." Gifting Xander with a brief kiss, Harry ventured off to craft breakfast. "Now, while I'm cooking, you choose an apartment."

Harry laughed at Xander's frustrated groan.

TBC

A/N: Don't shoot! I am so sorry for the delay in getting this chapter out. For those who haven't been watching my activity, my muses decided to scarper off into another entire crossover universe. Harry was also being a bit hyperactive and would not sit still!


	9. Loca Harry!

Title: Xander's Green-Eyed Obsession  
Author: Grayswandir  
Fandom: BtVS, Harry Potter

A/N: Confession time… Xander isn't in the top five list of my fave Buffy characters. In fact, Snyder ranks higher in terms of faves. Of course, after starting this story and watching episodes multiple times, I have come to understand that he was short-changed following the conclusion of season two. So, Xander is put to my beta, Werewindle, to make sure I haven't fouled up on characterization. She's also to blame for this fic coming out of bunny status. That said, on with the antics!

BBT

/I'm really sorry, Harry, but something happened with Buffy. I'll be there as soon as I can./ Harry sighed as the phone disconnected before he could reply.

Staring at the phone, Harry frowned. "What was that all about?" Harry had been busy while Xander played bartender that day, visiting the local realtors for property and vacant lot locations as well as dropping by the two apartment complexes that Xander had narrowed down the choices to.

And Malfoy called. He attempted to shift the blame onto Harry for the failed negotiation because _"You're the Gryffindork with the silver tongue and they deign anyone else as an insult!"_ The conversation (read 'pissing fit') spiraled downward until Harry simply hung up. Thus leading to Harry baking out his frustrations before escaping on his property hunt.

Harry cringed at the results of his baking binge. The counter was buried in baked goodies, thankfully some of it bread loaves. _Need to find a gymnasium. _A fair amount of stretching and a bout of weight lifting would help eat away the excess energy he seemed to have come into. Restless, Harry checked the clock atop the TV cabinet.

_10:25_.

Restraining the urge to tap his fingers on the tabletop, Harry pondered on what to make for the evening meal, knowing Xander would be wanting something to eat, despite his protests to the contrary. Nothing came to mind. _Could always feed him some cupcakes. Or a tart or two._ Harry laughed at his own musing. The clock ticked over. Sighing, Harry gathered his keys before heading out.

_I'll just take Xander out for pizza or whatever._ With that, Harry drove off to the Sunnydale campus.

BBT

"May your business lose prosperity in the coming days," Harry grumbled as he exited the campus pub after talking to the surly, unsavory bar owner. Apparently Xander had declared him a 'bad, bad man' as he left in fear for someone's life. Harry sighed, searching the nearby area, hoping for some clue as to where Xander may have gone. _Buffy's dormitory?_ If he knew where that was exactly, or even the number to the room, he'd try there. "In for a penny, in for a pound." Glancing furtively about, Harry drew his holly wand.

"_Point me Xander._" The wand swiftly locked into a direction, remaining steady. _I wonder what direction to take,_ Harry thought dryly before following the wand's heading, silently tucking it away. The smell of a dwindling fire alarmed him as he approached several fire trucks, lights flashing steadily with several kitted out firemen dragging hoses and fire hazard remnants out of an underground structure. For a moment, Harry panicked. _Oh, god, Xander!_

"Did you guys have enough fun for one night?" Xander's slightly drawling tone flashed Harry to Malfoy in his younger years, before he had had his arse handed to him multiple times. Turning, Harry saw Xander and Giles standing near an outdoor bench, Willow slumped back with Buffy crouched beside her. _Thank Merlin!_

"Yes, please." Weary resignation filled Willow's voice. _Ouch. Must have been in the fire._ Harry thought a pizza could do them all some good tonight.

"Buffy tired." Harry laughed at the declaration. _I do not envy her that hangover._ Harry shook his head as he started trekking over to the gathered group.

Xander raised a brow subtly, skeptically staring at his friend. "And was there a lesson in all this, huh? What did we learn about beer?"

"Foamy!" Buffy's enthusiastic reply threatened to undo Harry's semi-stealthy approach.

"Good! Just as long as that's clear." Harry chuckled at Xander's sarcastic answer, silently wrapping his arm around his waist. A slight jump of muscles responded to Harry's touch before Xander laid his own arm about Harry's shoulders. "Anyways, I think the boys in the car are contained for the time being."

Harry frowned as the entire group turned, following Buffy's progression toward the van. Her movements, and those of the males within, seemed wrong; out of sync with any person Harry had ever seen drunk. _It's almost as if they're under a hex, or a transformative potion._ Harry shook himself mentally. _Stop seeing things that aren't there, Potter! You've barely met these people._ Berating himself for his wild imagination, Harry watched as Buffy smacked a boy over the head with a broken tree branch.

Harry turned as Xander started shaking with laughter. "That's Parker, isn't it?" A very red face bobbed up and down as Xander continued to laugh. "Suppose he deserved that. Well," Harry took a deep breath, gathering the attention of the Scoobies. "I was planning to take Xander out for pizza, you're all welcome to join us."

Buffy half-pounced into Harry's personal space, Harry's free arm jittering to a halt bare inches from forcing her back. Buffy frowned, grasping the arm and _sniffing?_ loudly as she trailed up to Harry's neck before staring directly into his eyes. "Green Eyes smells yummy."

Xander groaned. "Harry gets a name. How is that fair? Y'know Buffy, I have known you longer."

Harry laughed as he turned to face Xander. "Do I want to know?" Xander's face morphed into a delightful mix of mortification and contemplation. _What are you pondering? _he thought, pecking Xander on the cheek, a slight blush blossoming underneath. Shrugging, Harry reissued his invitation, "So, pizza? Any takers?"

"Uh, Xander?" Willow hesitated as both Xander and Harry turned their focus on the redhead. "When—err." Willow started chewing on her knuckles. Growling lightly, she forced out her question. "Are you into guys now?"

"And suddenly I feel very hungry." Xander's blush deepened to that of a cherry tomato. "Deep thoughts need full tummy and convenient pizza-full mouths for delay tactics." Harry chuckled, turning to press his forehead into Xander's shoulder.

"Pizza sounds good. But how are we getting there?" Giles chimed in. "My car is not exactly hospitable to transporting more than two people at a time." A round of snorts and grins answered Giles' statement.

"I'm parked by the pub," Harry answered wryly. "Plenty of space."

BBT

Upon arrival at the vehicle, Willow squealed incoherently in a gibberish geek squeak and Buffy cooed "Shiny!" before nearly licking the back bumper. A minor squabbling about seating assignments followed that left Xander in the back as a buffer between the two girls. ("Yes, I know you're my boyfriend, but you are also younger and more spry." "You mean Giles is an old man! Don't think he can't take someone down in a fair fight." "Oh, no doubts there.") Thankfully the promise of pizza allowed for the expedient resolution of any issues until later and they swiftly arrived at a local all-night pizza joint a bare mile off the campus proper.

A couple pitchers of soda and a few platters of cheesy garlic bread swiftly filled the table before any questions could be lobbied. Emboldened by the friendly atmosphere and the garlic scent that washed away the lingering smoke in her nostrils, Willow popped out the first question of importance. "So, Xander, when did you two meet, huh?"

"I'll take this one," Harry chuckled into Xander's ear. Xander started to protest, spluttering slightly as he turned red. Ignoring his reaction, Harry started, "A pair of female friends took me out for my birthday. We ended up at a little club named 'Ladies Night'. I wasn't too thrilled at the idea of—" Harry was suddenly cut off by a piece of garlic bread shoved into his mouth.

"The short of it, Wil: July 31st." Xander's cherry face lit the table as he worried his lower lip between his teeth.

Working hard on chewing and swallowing the intentional conversation ender, Harry thought about what he had been doing. _I embarrassed him._ Taking pity on Xander, Harry turned his glowing face towards himself. "I'm sorry. I'll leave that story for when you are comfortable to share." With that, Harry planted a peck at the corner of Xander's mouth before releasing him.

"You two are so cute together!" Willow giggled. The red tinge renewed on Xander's face. "Besides, that story should be saved for when Buffy can enjoy it fully." Buffy, in response to her name, looked up from blowing bubbles into her soda and giggling. Frowning at the lack of attention, she returned to her fascination.

Xander groaned, half-ducking under the table. "Kill me now." Harry forced him back into the seat, a sardonic glare on his face. "Shutting up now."

Giles chuckled, eager to ask a question of his own. "So, Mr. —. Good lord, I don't think we ever received your last name."

Harry frowned, growling slightly. "It's Potter, and please don't," he half-mumbled. "I've spent most of my life trying to be just Harry."

Giles nodded. "Of course. So, Harry, what do you do for a living?"

"For a living? Absolutely nothing." Harry languored in the sea of confused faces before expounding with, "I don't have to. I just ... need to stay busy to avoid attracting my own special brand of trouble."

"Not busy enough," Willow tittered out before jumping slightly, turning to glare at Xander.

"Hey!" Xander growled. "You are so on the naughty list!" Harry barely remained upright as he started laughing at Xander's follow-up pout. "Not funny, Harry." Harry's laughter abated as he drew Xander into a comforting sideways hug. Feeling slightly better, Xander huffed out, "'Sides, I'm not trouble. Just a magnet for it."

"Maybe we'll get lucky and cancel each other out." Harry smiled as Xander returned the hug with a laugh of his own.

Clearing his throat, Giles interrupted the soppy atmosphere as the pizza arrived. "Back to the subject, what work do you do?"

_Oh how to say this without getting into trouble, _Harry mused silently. Grabbing his own slice of pizza and watching as Buffy grabbed a couple of her own, mashing two different slices together, Harry decided on the simplest explanation. "I'm in charge of new contract negotiations for _Hawkshead Innovations_." _And that's only the tip._

"_Hawkshead Innovations_? I've never heard of them." Giles adopted one of his deep thought expressions. "What does the company deal in?"

Thankful for the pizza _need to show Xander my appreciation later_, Harry chewed slightly slower as he went over the company's transactions in his head. Swallowing, he answered, "Imports, exports, distribution, some manufacturing; basically a bit of everything." _And I beg you not ask me for specifics._ Anticipating the follow up, Harry continued, "We're a fairly new operation. Most of us have connections or money and have been quite fruitful in our ventures. Perhaps someday we'll have shop fronts. Barring another cock-up from _Malfoy_, of course."

"Enough boring," Willow groused. "I want to know about _Harry_. Family, friends, ex-lovers, hobbies, pets, peeves, embarrassing potty incidences. Everything. Every time he's raised the Xander full-body blush." Willow's teasing final statement brought the same blush to the surface as Harry chuckled.

"Wow!" he continued to laugh, propping his chin on a fist leant against the table. "You give no quarter, do you?" A mock-frown accompanied a fierce head shake. "Anywhere specific you wish me to start with?"

"Ooh, ooh!" Xander bounced, his hand raised slightly. "I'm in favor of ex-lovers."

Turning, Harry quirked an eyebrow at his boyfriend. "Have you been wanting this information for a while?" Xander smiled nervously. Shaking his head, Harry started with that one. "It's a very short list. At thirteen, I noticed a girl who played the same position I did on an opposing sport team. I asked her out when I was fourteen; was rejected. We dated when I was fifteen, and then we split. At sixteen, I dated my then-best friend's little sister, broke up at the end of the school year. About a month before my eighteenth birthday I had sex with one of my former professors, one night stand. Last Yule celebrations, I snogged Malfoy. I could probably get pictures if you want them."

Xander blinked furiously. "Of the girls? The sex? The kinky action known as a snog?" The sound of choking came from Giles' general direction as Harry snorted out a laugh.

Coughing to halt his laughing, Harry answered Xander's confused questions. "The girls: sure, if you insist. The sex: definitely not. Snogging can lead to kinky action, but isn't normally considered such. This," Harry started before planting a heavy kiss directly on Xander's lips, "is a snog."

"Never mind," Xander muttered.

"Okay, Mister Perfect," Willow chirped, "who is this Malfoy person? Friend? Enemy? Frenemy? And why would we want pictures of the two of you kissing?"

"Sorry, it's been a very long time since I've had to share that information." Harry smiled. _It's so strange having to divulge this information._ Taking a breath, he started, "Malfoy, Draco Malfoy, and I have been classmates since we were eleven. We both attended a very exclusive private boarding school in Scotland. Starting on day one, the entire school, ourselves included, decided that we were to be the parochial antithesis to each other. Arch rivals," Harry answered before Xander could ask. "We fought, traded barbs, everything we were supposed to do.

"Well, most of the female population thought that we should just jump into bed together, get over it. It never happened while in attendance at school." Here, Harry sighed. "Most of the people at the Yule party were former classmates of ours: upper, lower, same year. Luna, a friend of mine, did something naughty indeed. She hid a sprig of mistletoe so she could uncover it at an opportune moment. Let's just say, we were both blind at the end of that snog." Funnily enough, not one of those pictures made it into a Wizarding publication. Harry suspected that they had, however, been placed into closeted shrines for fantasy driven moments.

Giles smiled at the story. "Are you still enemies?"

Frowning, Harry took a deep breath. "Not as such. We aren't friends, but we have a grudging respect for one another. He's still an utter prat. But he keeps me from having to attend most political functions, which I am exceedingly grateful for." _Not least of which means avoiding the sycophants that attend just to schmooze with the rich, famous, powerful, and connected._ Thoughts of Lockhart and Slughorn springing to mind.

A server approached the party, carrying the check. "Sorry for interrupting ladies, gentlemen, but we're closing up for the night. Who's buying?"

"I am," Harry answered, presenting a card for payment that made Willow's eyes bug out. A protest died on Giles' lips as Harry turned to him. "I issued the invite, it's only right."

In calm silence, the group boxed up the leftovers and departed the pizza parlor. Exiting into the slightly nippy Californian night, Harry spoke up, "It's a bit late, but we can continue the conversation at my hotel room if you wish."

"Oh, no," Willow piped up drowsily. "I—Buffy and I have classes in the morning and I have enough to mull over, thanks."

"And yourself, Mr. Giles?" Harry inquired.

Smiling slightly, Giles answered, "I'll leave the two of you the remainder of the evening. I'm sure you'd both appreciate it." Harry nodded as he helped Willow load Buffy into the back seat. Fully loaded, they swiftly arrived back at the campus, offloading Buffy, Willow and Giles.

As Harry pulled away, Giles asked Willow, "Why were you surprised by his credit card?"

TBC


	10. Dancing, Shopping, Anya, and Ice Cream

Title: Xander's Green Eyed Obsession  
Author: Grayswandir  
Fandom: Harry Potter, BtVS

A/N: That last chapter: it sucked, I know. It wasn't supposed to go all serious and mostly pointless. Here's some movement, I promise.

BBT

Friday morning was a lazy affair as far as Xander was concerned. Harry had charmed his friends fairly well, even passing the inspection of a cave-dwelling edition of the Slayer. Returning to the room the previous night had delighted Xander as Harry adopted his own full-body blush when they entered the kitchen to stash the leftover pizza. Informing Harry of his decision to quit at the pub didn't seem so bad after seeing the aftermath of his own frustrations.

The lack of a wake-up call eventually drew Xander out of his laze. Frowning at the lack of a slightly hyperactive British boy's presence, Xander opened his eyes to survey the room. _Nope, not in here._ Resigning himself to the idea that he was going to have to join the world now that Harry had been absent for some time, Xander threw himself upright, swinging his legs over the side of the bed. Stretching and groaning, Xander took a deep breath, taking the time to smell for any hint of food being prepared.

Nope. Xander knew that cooking wasn't strictly necessary considering the current contents of the fridge and kitchen but it was _Harry_ and he isn't always sane. The lack of Harry pestering him or, in lieu, cooking leant to a bad in Xander's 'verse. Growling, he pulled himself off the bed to search for his oddly truant companion. Xander froze on entering the living area, absently noting the sound of a mildly upbeat synthesizer, which even Giles wouldn't object to, playing softly. The furniture had been shoved against the walls and Harry stood in the vacant area. Well, more like splayed. It was this vision that had attracted Xander to Harry in the first place.

The precise, harmonious movements of hands, arms, feet, legs, head in a slow dance of deathly blows against an absent opponent presented itself as a stark contrast to the Slayer's own brute force style. Xander's own clumsy attempts to fight previously had been mocked or easily blocked by vampires and demons merely due to their own bodily strengths. Learning from Buffy or, ugh, Angel had not appealed to Xander as they both outclassed him in strength and neither were exactly forgiving of that particular downfall. And asking Giles to teach him always made him believe he was Homer to Giles' Burns.

"Enjoying the show?" Harry asked, his back still turned to Xander. A low sweep with the left foot, followed by a high kick from the right brought Harry closer to Xander's position.

_Always. _Ignoring the tease, Xander walked past, claiming the loveseat for a good sprawl. A light chuckle preceded the restart of the martial display. About the fifth circuit of the room, Xander knew he had to say something. "How'd you get so good?" Xander swallowed hard as he watched Harry's left foot go straight up in the air, flashing that mesmerizingly intricate tattoo that emblazoned the outside of said ankle.

Harry slid to the floor, starting his cool down routine. "Spent a lot of time restricted to an early curfew and I was regularly bored, so I read."

Xander gaped. "What?" he coughed. Harry turned to face him, still stretching. "You learned to fight from a _book_? I want this book!" His ban on book-learnin' could be put on hold if a book would teach him how to fight.

Harry laughed, snorting slightly. "Books: plural. Many, many books on many, many different subjects, not all of them about combat."

Xander stared as Harry rose from the floor without the use of his hands, trying to decide what that last sentence really meant. Still lost, he asked, "And what did the non-combat books provide?"

Smiling, Harry stood over Xander's sprawling form, sweeping his eyes up and down. "Aside from diversionary tactics?" Xander gulped hard as Harry issued a dark chuckle before swooping down to capture his lips in a simple heated smooch before drawing back slightly, locking eyes. In a whisper, Harry continued, "Fictional pieces can be quite … inspiring when it comes to actual combat."

Panting, Xander scrambled to respond. Swallowing slightly convulsively, he blurted out, "Rumors, heard, did I." Harry's expression became quizzical, head canted to the side. Wincing, Xander elaborated, "Reading make English speaking good." Groaning at Harry's answering laugh, performing a face-palm to himself, he finished with, "Waiting still."

Stealing another kiss before straightening, Harry smiled. "All right, lazy. I'm off to shower then it's time to get to work." Xander groaned as he was pulled upright, out of his comfortable position. "Dress, eat. Then we'll go sign some rental agreements followed by furniture shopping." Harry turned to follow through with his task, again allowing Xander the view of muscles quietly sliding under creamy tan colored skin.

_Slave driver,_ Xander thought, amusedly. "Yesss, massster," Xander replied in a passable imitation of Igor from any Frankenstein movie.

Harry froze. Swallowing hard, he responded, pain evident in his whispering voice, "Don't, ever, call me that. Even in jest." A subtle tremor rippled across his shoulders.

_Shit!_ Rushing to the other side of the room, Xander threw his arms around Harry's shoulders, pressing himself flush against that slender, shorter form. "I'm sorry," he whispered, nuzzling slightly against Harry's left collarbone. "I promise to avoid calling you that." Xander had learned shortly after meeting Harry that some words triggered the worst reactions. The tremble slowly abated, Harry taking deep shuddering breaths. "Better?"

Harry grasped Xander's hands, squeezing gently as he leaned back into his arms. Closing his eyes, Harry sighed, "Yeah. I'm," he swallowed. "I'm gonna grab that shower now." Silently, both boys pulled away, allowing for the only sound to be the still playing synthesizer as they returned to their previously sought tasks.

BBT

The day passed swiftly after two painstaking hours at the apartment complex due to Harry arguing with the manager about requiring a month-by-month contract, instead of an extended leasing agreement. Harry won, of course. Xander found it to be one of those wonders that someone who was classed as just about average in size could be commanding enough to cow even those who towered over him. Buffy never seemed quite able to put the fear of the word in people without an action, or three.

The boring paperwork finished, followed by a quick tour of the apartment, led to the shopping. Xander hadn't ever had the pleasure of shopping for furniture and wasn't sure if he would find it all fun. Of course, Harry chose to start with the mattresses. Some bouncing, lounging, lazing, and a minor bit of spooning. Xander had been wondering why Harry had chosen the unfurnished apartments of the two complexes he had narrowed the selection to until the bed testing began.

Yeah, Xander kinda liked furniture shopping.

Until the sofas, that is. It was the third, or possibly fourth, style they tried. Xander sat, nestling down, while Harry curled with his legs up on the seat. Leaning against Xander's side, Harry started whispering in his ear. "Now that we're comfortably alone, what happened with that fire last night?"

_Ah hell!_ Xander froze, not prepared to deal with lying on the fly. _What do I say? _"Well," he started. "I think one of those drunks was a pyromaniac, so while he started the fire, the others attacked the peeps inside." Simple, and not completely a lie.

Harry nodded into Xander's shoulder. "Makes sense. So whose life were you in fear for?" Xander flinched as he heard the casual tone. _Where—?_ "I visited the pub before I found you. Your boss said you left in fear for someone's life."

It was unnerving, Harry answering questions that weren't asked. Telling, that his thoughts were always in direct sync with Xander's private musings. That unpleasant demon-ish wiggins flared momentarily before he dismissed it. _Been living on the Hellmouth too long. Seeing demons in everything._ Swallowing silently, Xander replied, "Secrets, sorry." Harry pulled away, standing up and wandering off to another furniture set.

_Need to speak to Buff and all. Now-ish._ Resigned to the idea of actually trying to beat the Slayer into submission, Xander followed his boyfriend to the next living room display. He was still standing outside of the setup, allowing for Xander to walk straight up to him; glad he could rest his chin on Harry's shoulder and wrap his arms around his waist. "This professor of yours: ancient or just plain old?"

Harry chuckled, turning his head to face Xander. His eyes showed the pain he felt for being left in the dark. They both knew the previous subject was still in play, but Harry willingly accepted the change. "Oh, young, in comparison to others. Jealous?"

"Insanely," Xander affirmed, stealing a kiss before they continued couch sitting.

BBT

Thankfully the couch shopping passed seamlessly into dining tables before they eventually pulled away from the furniture store and straight into kitchen essentials at Sears. Harry snickered at the consternated look on Xander's face. Reaching across the gear shaft, Harry smiled, turning Xander to face him. "Last stop today, I promise. You can go look at clothes or tools or whatever; I'll find you when I'm done."

Harry fairly bounced out of the car after that and was halfway to the doors before Xander followed that bouncy figure. _Where does he find the energy?_ Xander smiled as he joined Harry inside, giving a quick kiss before heading off elsewhere to allow Harry to outfit _his_ kitchen. Xander wasn't sure where he'd go but he'd been party to numerous girl-led shopping trips and knew the art of aimless wandering.

A quick trip through menswear to peruse the latest surfer tops and novelty patterned boxers _Bugs is back in style, yes!_, followed by a slow meander through electronics to drool slightly over the Nintendo 64 display_ Cool! Resident Evil 2 is out_, before eventually ending up in housewares, bedding specifically. Xander cringed as he observed the miniature displays of the latest god-awful comforter designs. _Floral, in fall? That is so wrong._ Xander spied a neatly stacked wire bin, full to near overflowing with plastic wrapped, squishy new pillows. It had been quite some time since Xander last had a new pillow to pummel. Grinning, he pulled the top pillow off and proceeded to squeeze the air out and flatten the stuffing as well he could. _Hmm. I wonder which theme Harry would like._ Still clutching the pillow to his chest, he stepped closer to some of the less gaudy, still packaged comforter sets.

"Xander?" The tentative question didn't pull Xander far enough from his search to do more than grunt in response. "Xander!"

Shaking his head to pull back to reality, Xander turned to face his questioner. "Yeah?" It wasn't until he finished his turn that he realized who it was. "Hi, Anya," he sighed. _Always the magnet._

Anya giggled a bit before she responded. "I knew you'd see sense." That was when Xander noticed the nametag. _Joygasm._

Grimacing slightly, Xander knew the next minute would be a disaster. "Sorry, An', I'm not here to see you. I'm actually shopping." Well, he wasn't, not really. Harry was. _Semantics, Xander._

Anya frowned. It was a repeat of her look at the beginning of her friend misunderstanding speech from Halloween. "I don't understand. You're not dating anyone, I'm not dating anyone. We should date each other to complete one another and enjoy many eventful nights of copulation." _Well, at least she hasn't dropped clothing._

Xander coughed, hard. "Err, sorry to burst your happy, An', but I am dating. In fact, it's kinda serious. We're even moving in together. Paperwork signed and everything." A slightly wilted look came over Anya's face before she frowned.

"But who? Cordelia is in LA, Willow is still with the werewolf, Buffy would never notice you, so who?" Her tone was heavy with skepticism.

Xander closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and counted. _1, 2, 3, 4._ "Anya—I understand that this human thing is very new to you, but even you should realize that the dating pool, much larger than Sunnydale." He started as a warm hand extracted the pillow he was clutching, before pulling him tightly against a slightly smaller body. Xander relaxed at the comforting gesture.

Anya growled indignantly. "Excuse me, smallish man-boy! We were propositioning here!"

Xander could feel Harry resisting the urge to laugh, snorting slightly to relieve the pressure. "Smallish, man, boy," Harry repeated, deadpan. He stared at the blond female before them. "Curiosity: is English a new language for you, or are you just really awkward when it comes to insults?" Xander immediately turned, trying hard to avoid cracking up in full view of Anya.

Anya stamped her foot on the floor before she replied. "If I still had my powers, I would—"

Xander gasped, turning about, "Anya, you haven't met; my friend. Harry, this is my ex-girlfriend of one date, Anya. Anya, this is my boyfriend, Harry." _Damn ex-demon. So clueless!_

Harry obligingly offered a hand, refusing to relinquish his hold on Xander. Anya grudgingly accepted the offer. Shaking hands, Harry queried, "Powers?"

Xander clenched his teeth, trying to convey that Harry was in the dark about the Hellmouth and its related dangers, intimately aware that any physical motion would alert Harry. Of course, Anya didn't _understand_. In her natural pomposity, she answered, "When I was an avenging demon, I cursed men for the wrongs they committed against women. And I was very good at it."

"So how did you lose these powers?" Harry asked, not unkindly.

Anya frowned. "I miscalculated, and my power amulet was destroyed."

Xander waited for a laugh that never came. Turning, he saw a thoughtful look filled Harry's visage. Drawing a breath, Harry responded, "And I suppose you've partied with Death?" Anya nodded, confused once more. "Well, next time you see him, tell him I said hi." Then, Harry turned to Xander. "Did you want to get pillows today, or are you ready?" he asked, gesturing to the full cart sitting at the end of the aisle.

Confused himself, Xander squeaked, "We go. I, pillows later." Smiling, Harry proceeded to push the cart out the door, Xander trailing behind.

Anya stood still as she thought of the strange man's request. "Tell Death you said hi?"

BBT

The car was loaded with the purchases before Xander could think of what exactly he should say. Even with the extra time, he still couldn't decide, so he asked, "What, exactly, was that?" Harry turned, giving him a quizzical look. "The entire powers and death thing," he elaborated.

Harry smirked, settling back into the driver's seat. "I've learned that if a person is crazy, you're better off playing along with their fantasy. And if she wasn't, I'll know soon enough." He started out of the lot, turning toward the apartment complex.

Xander sat, pondering a bit. "So, Death is a person?"

Harry nodded. "Oh, yeah. Great conversationalist. Not a bad looking bloke either."

Xander turned to face his boyfriend. Glaring, he retorted, "Pull the other one, Harry." A shoulder shrug was Harry's only response.

BBT

The evening wound down quickly after dropping off the kitchen items at the apartment and a quick jaunt for B&Js before retiring to the hotel. Leftover pizza, a Nick at Nite visit with Johnny Carson, and Harry filled the Jacuzzi tub for some additional relaxation. As the tub filled, Xander checked the email he now had access to through his cell phone to find a vexing message from Willow, time stamped much earlier in the day:

_/ Need to speak to you about hawt guy, ASAP! /_

Xander frowned. _What could be so important about Harry? They only met last night._ He thought about when he might have free time to talk to Wil and the Scoobies, and subsequently drew an immediate blank. The sound of smooth jazz filled the air, drawing Xander out of his sudden conundrum. _Bath must be ready,_ he grinned. Setting the cell down, he grabbed the ice cream and two spoons to join Harry.

On entry Xander saw Harry was already in the tub, the jets on low, churning the vanilla scented water. Popping the tops off the pair of pints and spearing each with a spoon, Xander swiftly handed them over before divesting himself of clothing to join the green-eyed beauty. Xander moaned as he stepped into the semi-molten waters, a heated chuckle answering his moan caused a tingling arousal to emerge. Seating himself astride Harry's legs, he growled, "Evil!" before taking his own pint from Harry's hands and swooping in for a kiss. A questing tongue, already slightly chill and tasting of the blackberry cobbler flavor, met his own, wrapping and caressing each other in an intimate dance.

The need for air drew them apart, heat radiating from the water and their eyes as they both drew a bite of their chosen ice creams. Xander cleared the cream from his cow shaped chocolate candy piece before presenting his tongue for another kiss. Harry moaned as the flavors mixed within each other's' mouths, the chocolate candy melting in the heated abyss.

Back and forth they continued their personal ice cream social, silently enjoying the blissful atmosphere. Nearing the end of the individual pints, Harry refused a spoonful of Xander's preferred chocolate monstrosity, sighing. "Xander," he started. "I know I promised that I had nowhere to be until January but I need to take care of something Monday."

Xander frowned. "Why?" He knew it sounded petulant, but he really wanted to know. _What could be so important!_

Harry ruffled his hair before responding. "Malfoy bolloxed up and the contract negotiator refuses to speak to anyone else." Xander growled, refusing to look at Harry. Setting down his ice cream, Harry grasped Xander's chin, turning him to face meet eye to eye. "Xander, it will only be gone for the day, I swear, and any other issues will be over the phone only, not in person. Tell you what—while I'm taking care of business, you can setup the apartment for a flat warming, invite your friends and we'll have a movie night or something. Deal?"

_He sounds sincere. Should I?_ Xander closed his eyes as he thought of what might happen to him if he didn't accept Harry's offer. Visions of dating a girl like Anya or Harmony, or even a guy like Parker or Larry, flashed through his head. All he was pure heartache and rejection. Harry was his best chance at happiness. "Okay," he sighed, opening his eyes. "I choose the movies though."

Harry laughed as he relaxed back into the tub. "Deal."

The two renewed their ice cream sharing, even after the ice cream was finished. _Well, now I have a time to tell Willow._

TBC


	11. Accusations To Go

Title: Xander's Green Eyed Obsession  
Author: Grayswandir  
Fandom: Harry Potter, BtVS

BBT

The remainder of the weekend passed with little fanfare as Xander helped Harry relocate from the hotel room to the newly furnished apartment in the midst of smelling freshly laundered linens following another day of shopping for bedding and towels. Xander silently grieved the loss of the Jacuzzi tub. The new bed, however, made up the difference. Best sleep he had ever experienced, even that first hotel stay in Sunnydale.

Monday morning, however, surged forth with knots and butterflies when the ringing of Xander's cell phone woke him promptly at 7:15. Groaning, Xander sought his bedmate, but Harry had already left for his business meeting. _Why me?_ Dragging himself to the incessant ringing, Xander pulled upright enough to collect and answer the early caller. "Xander has checked out for the night, please try again later," he mumbled into the mouthpiece.

/Your British boy toy away?/ The chipper voice of Buffy was tinged with accusation. _She best not be blaming me for anything._

"Uh, yeah, for the day. Why?" Xander was in no mood for verbal sparring without at least eight solid hours of sleep.

/Good, we're coming over./ The sound of the receiver clicking as she set down the phone interrupted any attempt Xander had to reply.

"Fine, not gonna be dressed," Xander grumbled into his pillow. Sighing, knowing that the call was merely a courtesy and the girls were likely to be knocking in about five, Xander drew himself out of bed and grabbed a bath robe before taking care of the bare necessities. Thankfully Xander managed to finesse Harry into buying a very snazzy coffee maker. Three minutes to a full pot and Xander was happily sipping a steaming cup of java.

Eight minutes from the end of that miserable wakeup call, a rabid knock drew a grumbling Xander to the front door. _Right on time._ Sighing, he pulled the door open just a crack. Outside stood Buffy, Willow, Oz and Giles. "Don't three of you have a college life?"

"Open the door, Alexander," Willow chirped harshly.

Xander expected some type of hubbub considering the sudden need for both girls to play hooky just to talk to him, but dragging Oz and Giles along? It smelt of desperation to him. "Guess we're all here, huh?" he groused, pulling open the door to allow the remainder of the Scoobies to enter the apartment. The entourage ventured through the entrance area into the living room before Xander closed the door.

"Nice digs," Oz commented, eying the furniture arrangement. Harry fell in love with a furniture set of couch, armchair and a chaise lounge that looked like a regular armchair with an attached ottoman. Xander was just happy it was available in a dark wine, and not just teal.

"Very posh," Giles agreed, settling himself in the armchair.

The two females remained mum as they cased the living room area. Xander was well aware the place looked quite sterile still, only the bedroom and kitchen showed signs of real occupation. Nervously, he cleared his throat, ready to call this meeting to order. "So, Buff, Wil, sup with the early meet and greet?" _As I seriously wanted sleep-time!_ Xander gratefully sipped at his coffee, hoping the caffeine would kick in soon.

"Exactly how rich is _Lord_ Harry?" Xander risked whiplash as he turned to face Willow. She, Oz, and Buffy had settled slightly on the couch, all turned to face him. _Hence the accusation._

"So which are you angrier about! The _money_? Or the _title_?!" Xander knew that lashing out wasn't the smartest move on his part but this bald-faced inquisition hurt. Before anyone could answer, he continued, "I never asked, and Harry hates titles!" Angered enough to feel his hands shaking, Xander chose to pull out one of the chairs at the counter level dining table to sit, mentally applauding the fact the girls had to turn to look at him. Oz didn't bother.

Silence answered Xander's explosion. Closing his eyes, he took another sip of his coffee. The sound of rustling drew Xander back to his visitors. Willow was spreading a sheaf of papers over the empty coffee table and Buffy was creeping over to him. _What next?_ Xander resisted the urge to sigh. Oz saved the day. "That coffee smells great. You have any more?"

Xander blinked at the non sequitur. "Uh, yeah," he replied. "Full pot, cups above the drain rack." Oz disappeared to the relative safety of the kitchen. "Harry has one of those steamer, pot, things if you want tea," he added helpfully at Giles' resigned look.

"Oh, splendid." Giles left to join Oz, leaving Xander to deal with the girls.

Buffy sidled up to Xander's perch. "So, Xand-man, mystery man with moola, a title, and looks." She left the statement to fall stale.

Xander threw a cold, bored look at the petite blond. "And by your reckoning—demon?"

Buffy shrugged. "Well, your history, not outside the realm. Mantis, hyena, mummy, Cordelia." She paused before adding, "A bit of Anya."

"Low. Blow." Xander bit back. "And its several titles, not one. No, I don't know them, Harry finds them distasteful," he added as Willow's mouth dropped open to ask. "Is this an intervention?"

"No, no," Giles answered, exiting the kitchen. Xander watched as he bit back a moan at the first sip. "Harry has wonderful taste in teas." Xander laughed.

"Wait a sec, where's Oz? He should have finished before you did," Xander queried.

Giles chuckled. "I believe he is trying to decide which of the many pastries to ask to eat."

"Take as many as you want," Xander yelled out. "They'll go stale before Harry or I finish them."

"Thanks, man." Oz nodded as he exited the kitchen, coffee mug in one hand and a heavily laden serving tray in the other. Xander reluctantly followed Buffy to the couch, settling himself on the chaise as everyone partook of the platter of pastries.

"Yummy!" Willow hummed.

"Ditto," Buffy added after swallowing the first bite of her tart. "Why did you buy so many if the two of you weren't going to be eating them?"

"Harry made them," Xander replied. A look of distaste crossed her face as Buffy appeared to decide whether or not to risk trying to vomit. "And you jump to Ted, the amazing robotic man," he added bitterly. A look of guilt responded to his observation. Savoring his own pastry, Xander sighed. "Okay, so you must have found something you didn't like about Harry or you wouldn't be here so spill." _The bed is calling to me_, he was tempted to add.

"Xander, have you ever looked at his credit card?" Willow asked, shuffling a couple sheets of paper to the top.

Xander couldn't resist the dripping sarcasm as he replied. "It's a piece of plastic, connected to a bank account, Wil. Besides, Harry prefers cooking over going out, and after Cordy and the disaster of prom with Anya, I'm partial to it myself. Why would I inspect his credit card?"

"Well, um, yes," Willow blushed, before clearing her throat. "The thing is I noticed, the first thing I noticed, was the color. It was black." She stopped, grinning around to meet lost stares.

"And?" _Please get to the point._

"There were rumors going around ever since the credit card became regularly plausible and of course there were further rumors of these uber awesome editions that are only available to the rich and powerful." Willow began her geek-ish bouncing, while everyone waited for the conclusion. "AmEx, allegedly, just released these cards and the only real detail they have given is that they are black. Harry's card was _black_!" she squeaked.

"And you're—what? Reaffirming how rich he is?" Xander was happy to see Willow excited about something that had nothing to do with magic, but this was still rumor mill material, not hard facts. "You ever think they could be special print corporate cards?"

"Of course!" she replied, looking deeply affronted. "But most corporate cards would have the name of the corporation etched into the card, under the name right?" Grunts of agreement answered before she continued. "Well, unless it's a different name than your boyfriend gave, I'm certain that it wasn't business but personal. I did get a peek at the name, not the entire thing, mind, as it stretched to two lines with one long last name. What I did see was Lord Harry J-something with Potter started on the second line."

Xander just stared at Willow's little revelation. "So you want me to leave Harry because of a credit card?"

"No!" she gasped out, attempting to find something to soften the accusatory tone of the room, wheeling her hands about. "I-! I just wanted you to know." Willow looked flustered at her lame response.

"Then what, Willow?" Xander always thought that the hardest part of Harry was going to be the fact he was a he, not that he had money. "Are you jealous?"

Buffy jumped in, "It's not jealousy, we're kinda wondering where the money comes from."

"He inherited it," Xander snapped.

"It can't have been that much." Giles joined the conversation, setting his mug of tea down. "I contacted some friends across the pond, Willow also checked on the internet, and there is no evidence of anyone with your friend's name in any publicly available accounting of lords or title transference in the past five years. And it's quite unlikely for someone to attain the title of lord before the age of twenty-five in this day and age.

"We also did a bit of checking on the company he works for," Giles continued. "It barely exists. The name is registered under the ownership of H. B. Prince. No information is available on this person either. The company has no transactions, nothing on record."

Xander sighed, setting his coffee down. "Now what are you inferring?" This entire situation was wearing thin.

"No paper trail, I'd say illegal activity," Buffy chirped. Xander glared back. "Drugs, arms."

"My personal theory is that Harry's a pirate," Oz offered.

Xander smiled grimly. "Thanks, Oz." A nod returned. Taking a deep breath, Xander stood. "Okay this is nuts! First you think he's too hot for me, and don't try to deny it, Buffy," she immediately closed her mouth. "Next you attack him for hiding his money and titles, and now you accuse him of being a criminal?"

"No, Xander, that's not it," Willow attempted to placate her oldest best friend. "We just want to keep you safe."

"Oh yes, the mantra that you've all been spreading for the last year plus!" Xander growled. "Not one of you was truly concerned about my safety 'til Wil went witchy and Angel returned from badass-dom. Before that my safety wasn't much more than a footnote!" He wished that that last bit hadn't sounded quite so hysterical.

"Xander, we're trying to protect you." Buffy was whining slightly. _Very unattractive._ "I mean, what exactly do we know about him?"

"I know everything I need to know!" Xander angrily spat, pacing before the gathered group. "He makes me feel special! He likes my jokes, he accepts my pain, and I hate lying to him! I can see him pulling back every time I have to stop from saying anything. I just want to tell him about vampires and werewolves and demons and magic and that my best friend moonlights as a superhero!" He stopped pacing to glare in desperation at Buffy.

"Yeah, but what, exactly, do you know about him?" Buffy angrily repeated her previous question, this time sounding more like a command.

Enraged, Xander growled out, "You want dirt? He doesn't say much but the _scars_ certainly do!" The rest of the party cringed at the anger Xander conveyed. "He was orphaned as a baby, parents murdered. He was placed with abusive relatives who doted on their own child and rarely acknowledged him other than to inflict injury, emotional and physical." Xander paused to take a breath, huffing slightly before continuing in a quasi-calm. "When he's frustrated or upset, he'll bake up a storm. When he feels restless or in need of calm, he practices a martial routine that I'm certain could be used to take out a vamp nest with two stakes and a dagger.

"And a lingering touch will bring him to tears faster than any physical blow." A sad, wistful flair covered his words and face. Sighing again, Xander refocused on a slightly steamed Buffy. Gathering his own anger once more, he re-started. "What do you need from him to trust him enough to share? A written affidavit stating he isn't a demon out to steal my soul?"

"That would be nifty!" Willow's little exclamation was the final straw for Xander.

"Out! All of you! The party is no longer on, you are not welcome back here! Leave now!" Oz and Giles rose willingly from their respective seats, Willow guiltily gathered the papers she had laid out. Buffy, however, stubbornly remained seated. Xander could see the gears turning as she opened her mouth. Unwilling to give in, he interrupted, "If you refuse, I will call security, and with your record? You will go to jail."

Oz and Giles tugged a protesting Buffy out of the apartment, Willow trailing behind. Xander's conflicting emotions kept him from slamming the door shut, barely. _Need some ice cream._

BBT

Silence permeated the apartment when Harry returned at five past six. Xander resisted the urge to call out, instead slumping further into the pillows on the chaise. He hadn't bothered getting dressed after throwing out the Scoobies in the AM. He had emptied out an entire quarter quart of ice cream before putting it away to think.

Xander finally looked up when he felt the cushions depress. "Did I miss an _extremely_ tame, short, party?" Harry asked, extending his right hand to caress Xander's reddened cheek.

"No," Xander whispered, clasping Harry's hand to his cheek. "I threw them out this morning, they weren't being friendly." _Well, the girls weren't._ Xander would have welcomed Oz and Giles but without the girls, he knew he was really chopped liver as far as they were concerned.

"Just you and me, huh?" Harry grinned, attempting to soften the dismal atmosphere. "What would you like to do tonight?"

Xander looked around, trying to decide. His carefully selected movies wouldn't work for the mood he was in and he really didn't want anything complicated to eat. Determined, he met Harry's eyes. "Tacos, ice cream, movie, but not any of those movies."

"Well," Harry responded, as he pulled Xander to his feet. "If you want another movie, you need to be dressed."

Roughly an hour later, Xander happily laid in Harry's arms on the chaise, Taco Bell wrappers laid on the table, watching _Mickey Blue Eyes_. Harry silently carded his fingers through Xander's hair while using his other arm to circle his waist. Xander relished the feel of every laugh Harry issued. Wrapping his hands around the one encircling his waist, Xander sighed. _Yeah, I'm not giving this up, not even for the key to the city._

TBC


	12. Bronzing and Oz

Title: Xander's Green-Eyed Obsession  
Author: Grayswandir  
Fandom: Harry Potter, BtVS

A/N: There is minor Buffy!bashing this chapter.

BBT

Harry never did receive a clear answer on what exactly had occurred to force Xander to cancel the flat warming party but the evening was not unpleasant. Harry did know it had to have been quite disastrous; Xander spent the entirety of the following day talking to his friends in tones bordering on angry, and regularly upset.

Harry was reluctantly thankful for Xander's distraction as he finished with the paperwork end of his deal in Argentina. _Just in time for the full moon._ After repairing Malfoy's folly, the negotiations passed without incident. The hardest part of the deal was the insistence Harry be present for the first harvest. He spent the better part of three hours conveying his own personal commitments before they had allowed his concession. February. Harry would attend the February harvest to watch the mooncalves dance out their crop circles and the workers collect the dung. Neville's rare herbs were going to be happy plants in less than a week.

Completed contracts (and an explicit note that Harry was not available for negotiations until after the 6th of January, excepting emergency phone only basis) happily sent off, Harry joined Xander in the living room, watching as he argued with one of his friends on his own phone. Sliding onto the couch cushion beside Xander, Harry pulled him down so Xander's head was resting in his lap. Xander moaned softly as Harry started massaging his temples.

"Listen, Buffy, I'm tired of this!" Xander groaned out. "I am not the one to be doing the apologizing. You are, Missy May, and until you accept that, I'm going nowhere with you." A minute of silence followed where Harry could just barely hear the sounds of the bleached blond girl reaching out from the phone. Xander sighed. "Look, if you want to do this in person, Wil suggested Bronzing it tomorrow. I hadn't decided or asked Harry yet, but I might." Another short salvo and Xander began sagging into the couch. "I'll ask. Bye." Xander sighed as he relaxed following the end of the call.

Harry hmmed, continuing his ministrations. "Bronzing? Well I doubt that's a recreational tanning activity." Xander laughed, opening his eyes to catch Harry's. "So, guessing The Bronze?" Xander nodded. Switching to card his fingers through locks longer than his own, Harry continued, "If you wish to go, I will gladly accompany you."

Quirking a brow, Xander smirked. "There you go being all understanding again." Drawing up from his resting position, Xander drew Harry in for a kiss. He grinned as Harry went slack.

BBT

Xander had shared so many tales of his adventures in Sunnydale with Harry that, on entrance, The Bronze felt slightly akin to entering a place he had visited before but had not entered in many years. Light electronica filled the air, the live entertainment not due to start for another half hour. Despite the uneven tempo, several couples were swaying away on the dance floor. And there, perched on the stools around the center table, sat Buffy, Willow, and Oz. _Showtime._ Squeezing Xander's right hand, Harry brought both their hands up between them as he turned to face Xander full on. Grasping Xander's chin with his right hand, Harry smiled closing in to kissing distance. "Alright, Xander, we're here," he whispered. "Now you have to decide if you really are going to take their bollocks, "Xander laughed, "or force them to accept that you have a right to decide for yourself."

Xander smirked before stealing the distance between them for a tantalizingly sweet kiss. _I've created a monster,_ Harry thought as he surrendered to the feeling, his eyes sliding shut. Cho, Ginny, not even that retched moment of charmed-mistletoe glory with Malfoy came close to the completeness Harry felt in a simple kiss from Xander. Harry had lost all hope of finding happiness in the aftermath of that final clash against Voldemort.

Shaking himself from the morbid thoughts of the past, Harry pulled back. "They're watching." Xander groaned, pulling back himself to view the occupied center table. Three sets of eyes were staring at the pair. "Go, join. I'll get you a Dr Pepper." Xander reluctantly relinquished his hold on Harry to join his trio of friends. The Scooby group dynamic still confused Harry. He understood Willow, the giddy bookworm type, and her boyfriend Oz, the near silent supporter, likely only present because of the relationship. Even though Harry had only met him that brief morning in the college commons, he was nearly certain Oz was a werewolf. _Must be mistaken._ He was looking rather steady for this close to the full moon.

Xander's own role was fluid, but solid. He was the comedic relief and the random creative. Harry had borne witness to biting remarks that would have made Snape proud and glorious moments of genius that even the Weasley twins would fail to top. Xander represented the type of person the 'Golden Trio' definitely lacked and had sorely needed.

Then there was Buffy, an odd choice as de facto leader. She seemed a bit hung up on dating and fashion and her incredibly quick jump from whiny pity-me to a jealous streak that night in the pub was a bit off-kilter. Harry guiltily admitted that he had been that way for a while. In his defense, major extenuating circumstances. From Xander's stories Harry sensed she had a very wooly look on the world and the world extended only as far as what directly affected her. Her actions had been driving a wedge between Willow and Xander, a friendship that had been solid for at least ten years, since the day she arrived. It almost made Harry grateful for Dudley not allowing him to ever have friends before entering the wizarding world. _Almost._

The jostle from a passerby knocked Harry out of his contemplations to force him to the refreshment area, joining the short queue for drinks. The unmistakable sound of an English accent reflexively caused Harry to view those stood ahead of him. Giles. This man made a bit more sense as leader of the Scoobies. The man seemed to be of equal authority to Dumbledore or McGonagall. _Or, perhaps, Madam Pomfrey? _Harry swallowed a laugh at the image of the man garbed in the hospital matron's robes. The odd part of the entire affair was that he was still voluntarily hanging out with these teenagers.

Harry was unsure of what to make of it but was interrupted by the refreshment stand attendant. He happily ordered Xander's drink along with his own choice, hot chocolate. It wasn't cold out, but he was of a mood and butter beer wasn't an available option. While waiting, Harry focused on the departing figure of Giles.

The elder male had stepped up to the group at the center table, the current occupants appeared to be chatting amicably. Curiously, the blonde immediately began to jump from her seat as soon as Giles began speaking, but just as swiftly resettled. Harry wasn't close enough to hear, but he had noted the odd stares the man received. Shifting around the edge of the counter, Harry pushed near enough to overhear what was being said.

"Uh, latte anyone? On me?" The tremulous intonation in Giles' voice struck Harry funny. _Why is he nervous?_

Buffy's whispered addition of "So much for your predictable blanky theory, Wil" certainly didn't endear her to Harry.

"Splendid." The bitter note in Giles' voice did not go amiss as Harry watched him perch on the stool he was certain belonged to him. _Aw well._ Collecting the ready drinks, Harry passed through the lingering bodies to join the collected group. "It's ages since I've been to a gig. Don't look that way." Harry held a chuckle as he silently handed Xander his drink, glad the older gentleman could still convey his indignation. "I'm," Giles paused, scrambling slightly for the next word, "down with the new music. And I have the albums to prove it."

Harry aborted Xander's attempt to stand whispering, "I'm fine," content to stand at the table edge. In reply, Xander wrapped his right arm around Harry's waist, pulling him flush to his side.

Buffy's sudden biting remark of "Yes, but it's your cutting edge 8-tracks that keep you ahead of the scene" almost yanked a snide retort from Harry when a chill passed down his spine. Goose pimples rose on every plane of Harry's body. _A compulsion charm, here?_ He shivered, scanning the crowd to determine the origination of the spell. A warm pressure pulled Harry to look at Xander. A concerned look lit his eyes. 'I'm fine,' Harry mouthed, contentedly drawing his left hand to twirl his fingers in Xander's hair.

The conversation had continued while Harry searched the crowd, still not seeing what or who had brought the compulsion charm to the dance hall. It didn't appear to be affecting anyone yet, perhaps it wasn't what he thought. The band was nearing ready to start and the sniping at the table continued. Giles' sudden sarcastic "Thank you, all, for making me feel right at home" had Harry coughing to cover Xander's rejoinder. The look Harry was certain to receive for his interrupt, never happened. Suddenly, everyone at the table peered at the stage as the female lead began to sing.

Harry restrained the growl he felt rumbling in his chest. _Bingo._ Surveying the room again, Harry noticed that quite a few faces had turned rapturously toward the singer, most of them quite near to the table the Scoobies had settled at, fewer further out.

"Every Wednesday, I told you." Oz's reply turned Harry back to the table. Xander, Giles, and Oz remained intent on the stage performance while Buffy and Willow fell out of the spell's effects. The worry in Willow's eyes tore through Harry. The swerving attention of Oz suggested that the spell was targeted, semi-successfully, at him. Whoever cast it certainly was an amateur, or perhaps it was witchcraft. _Hmm…_

"I think she's rather remarkable. Such presence from someone her age." Harry turned to face the older Brit. He, Xander, and Oz remained entranced by the spell, their attention fixed wholly on the singing female. _I wonder._

Shifting closer to Giles, Harry nearly whispered, "Penny for the guy?" Giles promptly responded, "Of course," fishing a twenty out of his wallet and handing it over before centering back on the stage. A wry grin warped Harry's lips. _Of course, it could just be a general voice response compulsion. Very dangerous._ Sliding the proffered bill under Giles' overly large coffee mug, Harry turned his attention to Xander. _No spell is going to turn him away from me._ Forcing semi-limp digits to relinquish a half full glass of soda, Harry took hold of Xander's cheek, turning those chocolate irises to meet his own. "Let's dance." Harry firmly pulled Xander from his perch to join the multitude of swaying couples. It twigged Harry that no one seemed overly concerned at the sudden intense attraction the band received, as if this were a common occurrence. Further, something this strong, among a largely muggle crowd, and not one magical enforcement agent. _Have to visit San Francisco, see what's up._

Unfortunately Harry's plans to locate the core of the magical mischief fell to the wayside. The sudden bleeping of his mobile at two o'clock that night announced a call from Andromeda's solicitor. Ron and Hermione had garnered support from a lesser branch of a squib line of the Black family. Harry silently cursed his former friends. All he wanted was for Teddy to grow up in a healthier environment than he had. _Hermione, read a bloody inheritance law book. Buy a clue!_

BBT

Friday morning Xander woke again to the other side of the bed being cold and largely unruffled. _Two nights in a row._ Ever since that late night call Wednesday night, Harry had spent a huge portion of time arguing with lawyer types across the sea and at every moment of respite Xander noticed Harry shaking almost imperceptibly, his eyes shuttered to the world. Sighing, Xander pulled himself upright, dragging the world into its standard directional focus. His ears no longer muffled by the pillow, Xander could hear Harry in yet another long distance argument in the living room. _This has got to stop!_

Eating up the distance between the bedroom and living room set, Xander couldn't help but frown at the very harassed appearance Harry had adopted over the course of the past day. His shirt had come un-tucked, his hair stood straight up instead of in its usual disarray, and a growling posture took the place of his easy smile.

"Now look, Hermione! I understand that you are stubborn and have issues with the entire idea that the system is archaic but preventing me from attaining full custody of Teddy-!" Harry froze as an angry spate of female yelling came back toward him. A bitter chuckle issued from Harry's etched frown. With a sarcastic bite, he began again. "Because I'm capable of looking at the truth and saying 'No, that cannot be! I refuse to accept, must be a lie!' Grow up! Grab another of those obscure books you love so much with less than reputable sources and try again."

The screeching continued to assault both their senses as Xander drew near. Harry's entire stance looked tired, beaten, as his muscles went slack in a defeated air. _Enough is enough._ Pulling the phone from Harry's hand, Xander immediately turned his own voice to the conversation. "This number is being redirected to the dial tone as Harry is unable to stomach your shit for the remainder of the day. Please try your call again, when you've purchased a clue. Bye!" Xander viciously stabbed the end button before turning the phone off.

Harry attempted to smile when Xander turned back to him, but could barely manage bittersweet. "Thanks," he said, collapsing onto the couch.

Xander joined him, dropping the phone off on the coffee table. "You looked like someone ran over your dog and was trying to sue you for damages and mental anguish." Harry laughed, a genuine smile peeking out. "C'mon, I believe you still owe me some fighting lessons and definitely need to work off some of this frustration."

Harry stared at Xander. "And, where do you propose we do this? There isn't any room in this apartment and I have yet to actually find a gym in this town."

"I know the perfect place."

BBT

The sound of footsteps on the staircase drew Xander's attention to the interior wall. "Hey, Wil. Mom let you in?"

"She seemed cranky." Willow froze on the last step. Harry had conked out about an hour earlier as he watched Xander sort through his various belongings, his head resting on his crossed arms at the foot of the fold out, facing the outside entry. "Uhmm," she started, pointing at the sleeping figure. "What's he doing here?"

Xander smiled, moving to settle down on the remaining half of the bed. Silently he adjusted Harry's shirt to cover the scars peeking out from over his waistband. Harry snuffled slightly, his right arm moving marginally out from under his head, before settling back to deep sleep. "Long story." The incredulous look directed at him told Xander he better be more forthcoming. "Harry's been on the phone nearly non-stop since we left The Bronze, talking to lawyer-types about his godson. This morning he looked exhausted, frustrated, and in serious need of a calm down."

A smile played on Willow's lips as she responded, "So why not leave him at the apartment to bake up a storm?"

Xander mock-growled, "He's already put me off my Twinkies." Willow laughed. "I wasn't about to let him start on another of my favored snacks. Not yet. Once a month is frequent enough."

"As for cranky Mom," Xander continued. "She heard us down here, I finally had Harry start teaching me to fight, and with him being a bit tired, didn't last long." He started to blush. "We got off-track and Mom sorta freaked. She came to ask where I'd been for the past week. Things are a bit complicated.

"So," Xander interrupted himself. "I know why I'm in a dank sunless little room, why are you?"

Xander later wished he had roused Harry to help him with the deep thinking conversation he had with Willow, especially considering the aftermath. He just wished he could share with Harry why Oz skipped out. _Damn you, Buffy._

TBC

Post A/N: Hoping to get the next chappy up in time for Thanksgiving. Thanks for the reviews! They are much appreciated.


	13. All Trussed Up

Title: Xander's Green-Eyed Obsession  
Author: Grayswandir  
Fandom: Harry Potter, BtVS

A/N: Okay, so I'm a weak review slut. I was planning on waiting until Wednesday to post this (just beta-ed this morning), but here it is! Delivered as promised! This is the chapter that I believe you've all been waiting for. Word of warning: it's a cliffhanger and contains my second attempt at writing action. Enjoy!

BBT

A week had passed since the Scoobies had ventured out to The Bronze. Oz had skipped town following the disaster show that was Veruca and Willow was out of sorts because he was gone. _Misery, thy name is Hellmouth._ Xander refrained from sighing as Buffy interrupted his fun with Giles moment.

"I live in a dorm now. The girls in my hall want to party. Willow needs cheering up. I'm going to take her." Buffy looked slightly gleeful at the idea of shirking her Slayer duties to check out dating prospects.

"And going to a frat shindig full of strangers making out is supposed to do some cheering?" Xander frowned at Buffy's sudden conjecture that he had nothing better to do that evening but to do her patrol for her. "Slight problem: I've got a date tonight. Harry and I are going bowling. But if babysitting Willow is the big haps, I could ask Harry to let her tag along. He's never been bowling before, should be interesting."

Buffy frowned at Xander's proposal. "If baby Brit is still in town, what are you doing here?"

"Job interviews," Xander answered, knowing that she was fishing for disharmony. "Had one earlier, next one is in an hour."

"Still haven't answered the why aspect." Buffy half-tapped her foot, smirking.

Xander quirked a brow. "If you _must_ know, just before I left for the first interview some guy showed up who would be a shoo in in a mini-Spike lookalike contest and win a Queen Bee tournament versus Cordelia." Buffy and Giles both froze, presumably to picture such a combination. "Draco Malfoy, unless I missed my guess."

"Aren't you the least bit _concerned_ about your boyfriend alone with a guy he admits he's kissed?" Buffy quizzed.

"Nope," Xander grinned. "Zilch on the chemistry scale. 'Sides it was mistletoe induced; doesn't count."

BBT

Willow didn't regret going with Xander on his bowling date, it had been such a long time since she had seen him so very relaxed and happy. Harry appeared to genuinely care about Xander as well. She was still uncertain as to when her relationship with Xander had broken to the point that she hadn't seen this drifting unknowingness, or the possibility that he might be gay. One thing she did know: she and Buffy had better patch things, because if it came down to them versus Harry? It was so not in their favor.

After the date (Harry somehow managed to score a cool 175 in the third game _beginner's luck_), Willow had returned to the dorm. She needed thinking time, even if it was still early. She didn't know what she was going to do about Oz and his accidental act of homicide but Spike's sudden reappearance later that night certainly didn't help reassure Willow that the universe wasn't trying to dump all sorts of tragic on her in one fell swoop. His inability to bite? That actually cheered her up. Especially his admittance to wanting to bite her previously, although there was an ick factor the following morning.

But it was Monday now and the holiday curve balls were a coming. The early morning air was quite pleasant as she stood outside watching the groundbreaking ceremony with Buffy. For some god-awful reason Anya was there too. _Trampy un-demon. Leave town already._

"Look at him. Have you seen anything so masculine?" Anya sighed out, breaking up the droll speech of the dean.

"Dean Guerrero or his wife?" Buffy responded. Sometimes Willow wondered how Buffy managed to make it through any of her college classes, or her patrols, intact.

"I think she means," Willow laughed, pointed at Xander stretching as he waited for the go-ahead on the project.

"Oh. Very manly. Not at all Village People." Willow admired the fact Buffy could say all that with a straight face.

"So much sexier than the outfit from his last job," Anya commented. _Quit drooling Anya. That ship? It's sailed._

BBT

The commencement speeches were wrapping up as Harry arrived at the barren campus lot. Stepping up to the cordoned off area that denoted the construction site, he wasn't sure what to think when he heard the awkward brunette boldly state "I love a ritual sacrifice." _I must be hearing things._

"It's not really one of those," Buffy sounded off, sounding just as off-kilter as Harry felt. _Perhaps not._

"To commemorate a past event you kill and eat an animal," Anya spoke matter-of-factly. "It's a ritual sacrifice, with pie."

Harry couldn't help it, he laughed, startling all three females. "Very Dark Ages of you." The trio turned to follow him as he moved closer to the safety cones. Canting himself to view both the girls and Xander, Harry smirked, "Hi."

Anya retreated from her previous position, looking leery of being near the green-eyed male. "Hi," she responded, almost meek in comparison to her previous tone.

"Oh, Anya, meet Harry, Xander's _boyfriend_," Willow gleefully exclaimed as a minor staring contest began.

Anya's facial features twitched minutely as the sound of light applause sounded from the nearby ceremony audience. "We've met. Oh," she half-sighed, staring across the lot. "Soon he'll be sweating. I'm imagining having sex with him again."

Harry frowned, turning to fully face the ex-demon. "Do the words delusional and too much information mean anything to you?" A round of gasps and a gut-wrenching feeling had Harry swiveling around, and sprinting straight into the construction zone. "Xander!" A pair of Xander's fellow workers forced Harry to halt a couple yards shy of the gaping hole in the ground.

"Xander!" A coughing, half-choked "I'm okay!" calmed Harry's wildly beating heart. Taking a deep breath, he stepped back shrugging out of restraining arms. It was as he stood still, calming his racing heart, that he saw it. A slight shimmer in the air escaped from the gaping maw the earth had just created. _Lovely._

BBT

"Buffy," Willow sighed, exasperated as she rose up from her dorm bed. "Earlier you agreed with me about Thanksgiving. It's a sham. It's all about death."

"It is a sham," Buffy heartily agreed, shamefully shuffling her feet on the carpeted floor. "But it's a sham with yams. It's a yam sham!"

Willow laughed. "You can jokey-rhyme all you want but if you really want to do this, you realize Harry will be coming with Xander. Don't think you can get around that."

"Do we have to invite him?" Buffy grumbled, flopping back on her bed.

Willow shook her head. "Buffy, you have to be reasonable. We've accepted your boyfriends on less. Might even be able to have him host," she chirruped slightly. Willow hoped the idea of not taking part in any measure of clean-up would make the new boy more attractive to Buffy.

"He can make rolls," she huffed.

_I tried._ Willow sighed once more, giving up the futile endeavor.

BBT

The day of celebration arrived in true Hellmouth fashion: a couple deaths, an impending third. Nonetheless, it didn't dissuade the Slayer from wanting a perfect Thanksgiving feast. A knock sounded at Giles' front door.

Arguments halted as Buffy responded, Willow and Giles tranquilly trailing behind. Xander sniffled slightly as the door opened, "Happy Thanksgiving." His construction job had released at midday to allow for holiday celebration. Anya had trailed him from the site. _Must love stalker-types,_ he thought sarcastically.

"You didn't bring rolls?" Buffy chimed in a hurt fashion. Xander rolled his eyes, presenting a large canvas bag filled to the brim with fresh baked dinner rolls. Squealing, she jumped forward, inflicting a friction burn on Xander's hand in her haste to gain possession of the bag. Peering in, she commented, in shock, "Don't need this many."

"We've been over this," Xander chided, pushing silently past the Slayer to enter the apartment. "Harry: frustrated, equals baking frenzy. I can't tell if he's more upset about not being allowed to truly assist or not being offered the opportunity to host." Xander groaned as he settled into the armchair, grateful to be off his feet. He'd been feeling a bit buggy since the pitfall but it wasn't any worse than an early cold.

"What's she doing here?" Willow pointed at Anya, lingering a few steps into the entry hall.

Xander, unable to help himself, responded, "She followed me home. Can I keep her?" Everyone turned to Anya, wondering at her reaction.

Anya frowned. "I don't understand."

Willow chuckled. "Kinda depends on your boyfriend, doesn't it Xander?"

"In that case, it'll never happen." Straightening slightly, Xander addressed Anya head on. "Sorry Anya, Harry is pleasantly possessive. No room at the inn. You'll have to find someone else to adopt you." _Now please accept that I am not one to be stalked, thank you._

Glaring, Anya pouted as she turned to leave. "Fine, then I won't tell you what I know about your so-called boyfriend."

"Anya wait!" Buffy called, a manically gleeful expression on her face. "We're having Thanksgiving dinner in a few hours. You can stay if you share."

Anya turned back, staring shrewdly at the blonde. "Promise?"

"I swear by my slayee powers." Buffy made a great show of writing an air-cross over her heart. Xander glared at the Slayer, wondering what she was hoping to accomplish with her little game.

Still looking quite skeptical, Anya settled herself on the couch, Buffy perching on the end. Impatient, Buffy prodded, "So? Spill."

"Xander's new friend: he's a wizard." Everyone blinked.

Giles coughed, a scoff barely buried in the noise. "That's quite impossible Anya. Wizards died out, roughly a thousand years ago. It's quite clearly written in 'Wizards, Witches, and Warlocks'."

"I remember that moldy oldie," Xander chirped out. "Right after Wicca: The Wicked Witchy Way." He grinned at the manufactured title.

Giles's face turned a sickly shade of gray, his eyes closing as he pulled his glasses away to clean them. "Thank you, Xander, for that wildly inappropriate comment." Willow snickered into her stack of books on the Chumach Indians.

"Be that way," Anya gritted out. "My information comes from an impeccable source and mark my words, Harry—is a wizard."

Clearing her throat, Buffy turned her attention to Xander. "Speaking of Harry, when's he showing up?"

"He had a scheduled phone call with his godson so he'll be here in time for dinner. He's bringing by dessert as well." Xander smiled, ruminating on what Harry and Teddy together would look like. _I bet Harry would be a great father._ A rumbling cough broke Xander from his musing. "Got anything to drink, Giles?"

BBT

The darkened greenery flashed by as a trio of bikes sailed across the college campus grounds. Xander couldn't figure how Buffy intended to keep the activities the Hellmouth wrought secret from Harry any longer. He had come very close to discovering the wrongness of the area at the pizza parlor, Xander could tell at the way Harry looked at Buffy's abnormal beer-induced actions. Anya's speech pattern seemed more an amusement than a real curve ball, but even that had to have hit the weirdness radar. The blowup helped throw him askew but the follow-up at The Bronze? Xander couldn't remember fully what occurred in the course of that night but he knew Harry noticed something. The Hellmouth complacency mojo didn't seem to work on Harry. Not at all.

Xander pedaled faster, thankful that Angel had decided not to follow them back to Giles' place. It was going to be hard enough explaining the presence of Spike and Anya, adding a third into the mix? He was three shades of happy to not be in the Slayer's shoes this night. _Harry should be showing up in the next ten minutes!_ Xander could only hope that this fight would be well and done by that time. He almost sighed in relief as the staircase down to Giles' apartment peeked into view.

Abandoning the bicycle in mid-motion, Xander ignoring the sound of it crashing as it fell to its side. His heart began pounding in earnest as he charged down into the brick courtyard that led to Giles' front door. _One little, two little—not helping!_ Xander took one shuddering breath before planting his left foot just above the tailbone of one of the fighting spirits. He cheered inside as the being went down, crushing the notched arrow in the fall. The swift recovery, Xander did not expect. _Shit!_ Even worse, the other spirit attacking from the front of the apartment leapt down to surround him. _Oh, I need help._ Anya and Willow sprinted down the stairs, dividing the attention of the new arrival. A quickly thrown potted plant and the addition of gardening tools thoroughly distracted the new opponent.

_Okay, Xander, you can do this!_ Squaring off with his newly acquired sparring partner, Xander swallowed hard. They danced back and forth, narrowly avoiding the empty fountain. A glancing punch, a shallow leg sweep. Move after move. Xander swept back, attempting to dodge as many of the blows as he could, but he wasn't feeling his best and, grudgingly, had not had that many lessons in fighting. _Is it a bad that I want Harry to see this?_ Xander's wandering thoughts blinded him to the sudden lunge that pushed him through the front door, and into the five man frenzy inside.

BBT

Perturbed by the attitude he continued to receive from Buffy, Harry growled as he exited the car. He had grown used to people hating him for being _oh so perfect_ or being adored unabashedly by the girls who subscribed to _Witch Weekly_ but this utter contempt from someone who knew absolutely nothing about him? It had been novel at first, but now it was irritating. Harry swallowed guiltily about his white lie to Xander earlier. He did have a call to Teddy, but he also needed to visit LA, pick up a potion to undo the nasty that pernicious spirit had inflicted on his boyfriend. _I'll have to tell him tonight. Just hope he's okay with it._

Sighing, Harry collected the dessert dish from the front passenger seat and calmly made his way to the apartment proper, slowly schooling his face into a slightly more cheerful look. _Don't be a downer. You are a guest and you shall be genial._ Harry blanched slightly as his own mental voice tuned slightly into Aunt Petunia.

The sounds of a scuffle made Harry falter. _What in the world?_ Xander's friend Willow and the strangely verbose female, Anya, were both chopping away at what appeared to be a twin to the spirit Harry had spoken to earlier that week. Sighing internally, Harry set the dessert dish down, silently casting a temporary protection charm to keep the bugs and beasts away. _When will these spirits learn to listen?_

Anger renewed, Harry drew his favorite dagger before skipping silently down the staircase. In between raining blows with the shovels, Harry spun, his left leg swinging high to strike the spirit's neck with the inside of his ankle. The blow landed hard, throwing the being to the ground in a daze. Following his own leg down, Harry struck out with the dagger, swiping high at the spirit's upper arm. A look of peace fell across his face before he faded into the ether.

"See? I told you," Anya murmured, watching as Willow goggled at the sight.

Harry ignored the two females, more concerned by the sounds coming from inside the apartment. Sprinting forward, Harry spied Xander pummeling one of the spirits, Giles another, Buffy in a mano-a-mano with the original and one other poised to pounce on her back. _I don't think so!_ Harry gave an unwitting cry as he flew forward, flinging the backstabbing transgressor into the wall. The sound of picture frames shattering on the floor made Harry wince. _Damn it! This is getting ugly._

A glancing blow to Harry's jaw forced his attention back to his opponent. The close quarters of the apartment forced Harry to use his arms instead of his preferred distance blows with his legs. _If only Quidditch had been a more upper body sport._ Harry laughed at himself. It was an equally upper and lower sport, but not the way he played it._ Just as well, Harry hunting was __**definitely**__ a lower body sport._ The spirit brazenly leapt forward, Harry dodged, sweeping his right arm up under his armpit, twisting the spirit around, shoving him into the wall. The spirit kicked back, wrenching free of Harry's hold.

"Your knife can kill you," Buffy exclaimed in astonished awe filling a downward fall in the sounds of violence.

The sudden sound of a bear snarling rent the air, drawing Harry away from his current adversary to see the fifth spirit, the original, had morphed into a vicious brown bear. _Enough of this!_ Leaving Xander to deal with his one spirit, Harry knocked his to the side with a hard blow to the solar plexus.

The frantic yelling of an unknown male blanketed all other sounds. "A bear! You made a bear!" Grateful for the hysterical sounds, Harry summoned his wand, marking a sharp slash and full circle swish to the floor beneath the growling beast.

"I didn't mean to," Buffy half-whimpered, her purloined dagger barely remaining in her slackening hand.

Harry had never heard her sound so meek. _That's a switch._ The cry of "Undo it! Undo it!" from the still unidentified man forced Harry to draw faster. One slash. Another. The fight renewed from the previously downed spirits behind him and the sound of a chair being shuffle-dragged filled the short dins in the combat.

One more vicious slash of Harry's wand and the symbol completed. Everything stopped. The first slash lit up in a menacing dark green glow, bisecting the bear. The circular line lit in an ominous black willowy shadow. The final three lines radiated a silver glow in order of being writ upon the ground. Harry prowled forward, wand pointed downward, a faint silver light still present at its tip. His left arm was drawn up in front, his eyes glinting in the reflecting light from the drawn sign of the Deathly Hallows.

A silence descended heavily as the bear's human-shaped compatriots faded in mid-strike. Faltering hands and feet settled as all attention was drawn to the otherworldly light in the center of the room.

The bass timbre in Harry's voice nearly boomed across the room as he spoke in a deep growl. "I told you to leave." The dagger, glowing an icy shade of blue, laid unwaveringly parallel to his left forearm, poised to easily be thrown in whichever direction necessary but still threateningly close to the bear's throat, still in its two-legged stance. The painted lines that had formed on the carpet became less defined as the radiating light meshed together.

The bear shaped spirit shuffled backward, and stopped, unable to leave the confines of the outward triangle. The visage faded from bear to the previous warrior native. "My people cry for vengeance! It must be answered by the blood of these peoples' warriors!" He waved emphatically to encompass the panting occupants of the room. Harry absently noted the trussed up figure on the floor, arrows poking every which way.

"I forgave your immediate transgression; you were blinded by the day. I understand why you mistook Xander to be your enemy." Harry's calm statements shook a gasp from Xander. "But I also told you not to pursue this vendetta. Vengeance begets vengeance. It leads unto itself in a vicious cycle. You were to leave peaceably. And your failure to adhere leaves me no choice." The luminous dagger flashed brighter in intensity, lending its own fire to the light Harry's emerald orbs appeared to emanate, portraying a sickly demonic visage. A split second passed before the blade appeared to dim, but it hadn't. The lethal length sat plunged hilt deep in the chest of the silently screaming spirit.

The ensemble stared as the malevolent spirit disappeared, the glowing dagger plunged into its chest. The luminous symbol faded from the floor in time with the dagger. The wand Harry held in his right hand appeared to evaporate as he turned to survey the carnage of the battle. He winced at the incredulous looks, and mild betrayal emanating solely from Xander. Standing erect, his left hand moving smoothly into the air, palm flatly facing the ceiling, Harry gulped, closing his eyes. A floating glass bowl with alternating layers of a white creamy substance and raspberries breezed through the open door to alight softly upon the elevated palm. "Eton mess?" he winced, biting his lip.

No one moved, even when the smoke detector began to titter about.

TBC


	14. Tyranny at the Table

Title: Xander's Green-Eyed Obsession  
Author: Grayswandir  
Fandom: Harry Potter, BtVS

A/N: Sorry about the extended delay. Muse kept flitting off into different fandoms and then no one felt like cooperating for dinner. I'm not really happy with the way things went. *Sigh*

BBT

One minute passed.

Two.

Annoyed at the complete lack of motion and the sound of that incessant alarm, Harry opened his eyes to see if anything was registering on the faces of those in the room. The man tied to a chair _older Draco_ was blinking somewhat stupidly in his direction, unmindful of the arrows that still stuck in him as if he were a pincushion. Harry noted the lack of free flowing blood and sighed. _Of course, a vampire._

Buffy, standing quite near to Harry and still holding the spirit's dagger, cocked her head, appearing unsure of whether to attack, back off, or join vamp-Draco in the blinking contest. _She had better not try the first one._ Harry turned a little more to see Giles, slightly tenderized, mid-way between sitting on the floor and pulling up to attack a no longer present opponent.

Anya stood smugly in the broken doorway, a smirk teasing at her lips. Willow had squeezed in before her. She presented a lot more activity, but still remained stationary. Her head kept bobbing up to look at where the spirit's mouth issued its last vile statements to the floor that previously held the mark of the hallows to where Harry had straightened abashedly. _Unlikely to get any movement from her anytime soon._

Trying not to gulp guiltily, Harry attempted to set his sights on Xander. That glimpse of betrayal flashed before him, shaking out an involuntary flinch before his eyes settled on the floor. That creeping feel of rejection Harry always seemed to gain when he began to _belong_ rose up his spine; his mind conjuring up Big D and his posse whispering vicious rumors in everyone's ears. Harry swallowed hard, closing his eyes as the acrid scent of smoke wafted from the kitchen area. Lowering the pudding dish, Harry reopened his eyes, gesturing toward the strengthening cloud. "You mind if I get that? Charred, dried turkey: not tasty."

Without waiting for a response from the frozen group, Harry turned to tend to the dying feast. _Here's to my fucked up life._ Resisting the urge to slam his contribution against the wall, Harry gently dropped the dish on the only empty space on the counter, aggravated by the messy situation, in the kitchen and elsewhere. _My hands would be fried worse than Dobby ever managed if I'd done this to Aunt Petunia's kitchen!_ Spinning all the dials to off and re-summoning his wand, Harry silently vanished the smoke and blessed silence emerged from the now quiet smoke detector. Another quick flick and the counter cleared of detritus so Harry could work.

The sound of slowly shuffling feet passed through the kitchen from the living area. Determined not to spy on the goings-on, Harry turned to the oven and a blackening outer skin of the turkey. Harry swallowed hard as his thoughts drifted to that macabre place where he went when he thought of secrets and lies. _I am Albus Dumbledore. Not willing to give of myself to others, holding everyone away while collecting my various fancies and secrets._ Roughly shaking himself, Harry forced himself to focus on his current task, instead of his self-defeating mind. _Plenty of time for that later. _Growling, he waved his wand at the irregular bird, transfiguring it into the perfect masterpiece it was meant to be. The charred smell faded as the heavenly scent of a well-roasted bird filled the air.

Harry indulged a moment to enjoy the scent, closing his eyes to savor. The sound of a throat clearing startled him; Harry's wand trained instantly on the person interrupting, a curse ready on his lips. "Whoa!"

Harry gasped, his eyes focusing in the direction of his wand. Xander stood in the archway, his arms at right angles above his body. Harry swallowed convulsively, lowering his wand to the floor. "I'm sorry," he nearly sobbed. "Hostile environments. I get jumpy and-." Harry stopped, putting his wand away. But his nervous mind continued on, imagining all the things he had been accused of in the past being lobbed at him once more. "I'm sorry," he said again. "I'll be leaving as soon as dinner is fixed. I'm a walking catastrophe! I've never been able to-"

"Harry, stop!" Xander tried to interrupt but Harry continued to roll over him, rambling non-stop.

"—take temporary friendships! You can stay at the apartment, rent is paid through the end of January. I'll collect my personal things tomorrow. I screwed up, and I promised that I wouldn't lie-."

"Harry! Look at me!" Xander snapped, startling Harry from his self-deprecation. Turning, confused, he met Xander's eyes. That earlier look of betrayal had faded into a bewildered thoughtfulness. Relief washed through Harry. _Thank Merlin, I haven't screwed up._ He ignored the petulant _yet_ that attempted to sneak in. Xander snorted, stepping forward, wrapping Harry in a loose hug. "If you leave, you'll only make me feel guilty and sad and angry," he whispered. "We've both been hiding things. Please don't leave."

"You're not mad?" Harry almost keened, a desperate undertone to his soft spoken question. Harry's eyes shifted from one brown eye to the other, hoping to see that defining light, the one emotion that clearly said _it's okay, we can work through this_. Harry spied it just on the edge, right by the extreme uncertainty of the situation.

"Mad? No." Xander shook his head. "Bewildered more like. I do have one question, before we face the riot act." Harry bit his lip, a thousand and one questions racing through his head, each one more damning than the last. Swallowing, he nodded hesitantly. Taking a deep breath, Xander spit out, "Areyouademon?"

_Huh?_ Harry blinked, unsure if he heard right. Squinting as he peered at Xander, wondering what the question was supposed to be, Harry asked, "Sorry?"

"Are you a demon?" Xander enunciated carefully, standing back slightly.

Harry snorted out a laugh. "That's your question? Am I a demon?" Xander nodded enthusiastically. Harry laughed again, a smile on his lips. "Really?"

Xander frowned, a sulk beginning to form. "If you're not going to answer, then maybe it really is over." Pulling back completely, Xander turned to leave the kitchen.

"No!" Harry barked sharply, anxiety in his voice. Xander started as he turned around, a question in his eyes, and forming on his lips. Harry sighed, closing his eyes momentarily. "No," he whispered. "I'm not a demon."

"You're not just saying that, are you?"

"Xander!" Harry huffed back, exasperatedly.

Xander grinned, bouncing back into Harry's personal space. "Just checking."

Harry rolled his eyes, muttering, "Cheeky bugger!" Sighing, Harry shook his head. "So did you just come to be a bother, or are you here to assist in readying dinner?"

Xander groaned, throwing his head back. "If I must."

"Yes," Harry growled, cuffing the back of Xander's head. At Xander's indignant _hey!_, Harry turned him to the counter. "Pots, bowls, shift!"

"Yessir!" Xander sketched out a mock salute, earning a goose from Harry. Snickering, he did as he was commanded. The two worked in near silence, the sound of spoons scraping the sides of pots filling the air alongside the sounds of shuffling feet and low murmuring from the living area. Halfway through Xander's transfer of the boiled potatoes a hand snaked across him to wrap around his right wrist, halting his progress.

A frown laid etched on Harry's face as Xander turned. Licking his lips, Harry asked, "Why a demon?"

BBT

Meanwhile, Buffy, Willow, and Giles worked in silent synchronicity, stunned at the sudden entry of Harry and, subsequently, rapid conclusion of the fight.

"Believe me now?" Anya bleated as she stood, watching the trio straighten chairs and re-settle plates on the table.

"Just because he is capable of magic, does not necessarily mean he is a wizard, Anya," Giles bit out angrily. "And until we receive confirmation of what type of magic he practices, your accusations are unsubstantiated." An angry huff answered Giles's statement.

"What's the big deal with wizards?" Willow froze at the incredulous stare her question drew. Gulping as she straightened another fork, she continued, "I haven't found anything that ever even alluded to them, so why with the impending apocalyptic reaction?" Willow finished with her regular joking rhyme-y rhythm.

"Wizards were natural-born magic practitioners," Giles answered. "An untrained wizard had the potential to defeat a long practiced Wiccan witch without any assistance." Willow's face paled. "But there is no need to be worried, wizards have been dead for a thousand years," Giles quickly assured.

"Says _you_," Anya grumbled.

Giles's eyes lit with fury as he glanced at the ex-demon. "Say all the texts," Giles growled.

Anya rolled her eyes before plopping into one of the center chairs. "Whatever," she mumbled.

"As much as the disharmony in this room is _thoroughly gratifying_, I would very much like _not being a pincushion!_" Spike yelled from his supine, bound position.

"A pile of dust feels no pain," Buffy singsong-ed as she reluctantly walked over to the downed vampire.

"Nor does it speak," Spike spat, grunting as the slayer righted his seat. "Careful! Arrow slips and it's bye-bye information!" He howled as each arrow was yanked out at an unrelenting speed. "That smarts!"

"Don't be such a baby," Buffy groused, shoving the bound vampire to the table.

Glaring at the slayer, Spike smirked. "Now you'll have to feed me, got to _eat_ to heal."

"Sorry," Buffy replied faux-contritely, "the shop's closed for the night, and gravy may not be enough to heal. The shop may not be open until Monday. _Poor thing,_ I guess you'll just suffer."

"I think the Geneva Convention would have words with you on that." Buffy jumped at the dark tone. Turning, she spied the angry countenance that was Harry, carrying out stuffing and a slightly steaming gravy boat. Those glowering green eyes froze her rejoinder as Harry continued, setting the dishes on the table. "Starving prisoners makes you worse than those you fight."

Buffy frowned, pouting. "Spoilsport," she muttered.

BBT

Dinner began ominously quiet, everyone tense, including the vampire guest. Buffy sat fuming next to Giles and directly opposite Willow. Harry trumped Buffy out of the end seat, Spike to his left, Xander on the right. Anya sat nestled between Xander and Willow. The turkey was carved neatly, mashed potatoes portioned out, and all the other preferred items dolloped out on the plates. Anxious glances darted in Harry's direction from all others at the table. Xander, mostly worried about what everyone else would do to rile Harry enough to leave, or rip them to shreds. He also had no clue what he would do if either situation came to pass. A few minutes of silent chewing passed before Giles had enough.

Sipping some water, Giles cleared his throat before speaking. "So," he swallowed, "Harry. Anya tells us you're a wizard."

Xander tensed as Harry calmly finished his mouthful of food, drawing the napkin to his lips before responding. "Last I checked," he spoke crisply.

Willow squealed, eyes shining in geek-joy, immediately slipping into her rapid fire, information gathering, speech pattern. "That is so cool! You've had magic since you were born! I've done a few spells and they are wicked awesome! What's the most phenomenal spell you've ever cast? Have you ever summoned an incubus? Not that I've ever tried it just thought it would be interesting to see a real one. I always thought they would be quite fascinating beings to meet." The looks she was garnering made her switch topics.

"How old are you? I mean, you look like our age but with wizards being dead for like a thousand years and everything that must mean you are wicked powerful and awesome smart." The rapid speech trailed off for a moment, nearly allowing Harry to speak, but Willow's spitfire thought process interrupted once more. "Thought: If you really are a wizard, and definitely at least a thousand years old, that must mean you've killed before." Swallowing, she asked, "How many people have you killed, Harry?"

"Now isn't that an inappropriate topic," Harry muttered, incredulous. The silence lingered in that pregnant pause that no one ever wished to fill. "You're serious?" Nods around the table. Carefully clearing his throat, Harry answered with as much decorum as he could muster. "Well, not sure where your information comes from, especially as you seem to know what a wizard is, but: not sure; no way in hell; nineteen; and one, officially."

It was the final answer that caused an uproar. Buffy exclaimed "I knew it!" before launching herself across the table. Giles looked startled by Harry's statement, more than his responses. Willow adopted a thoughtful expression. Anya looked bored, as was her normal wont when in company of any average human. Spike's eyes lit in excitement of the situation. Xander bolted upright, determined to defend Harry.

Harry…

The air rent with a double crack akin to thunderclap, the tremendous sound driving all to the floor. Harry's chair stood vacant, no corresponding person crouched below the table surface.

"Harry!" Xander panicked, thinking maybe he had had enough.

"He's bad news, Xander!" Buffy snapped out as she righted herself. "Didn't you hear him admit to killing at least one man?" Anya snorted as she re-seated herself. Buffy turned to her. "Have something to say, ex-demon?!"

Anya locked eyes with the Slayer. "You assume that killing someone is the same as murder. If the wizarding world is as it was when I was last human, in all likelihood that death was in a war."

"What?" Buffy sneered, her face contorting into an incredulous expression. "Why would _he_ be in a war when he's only _nineteen_?" Heavy sarcasm dripped off her tongue at the number.

"Because I was _chosen_," a darkly intoned voice sank from the upper stairwell. Twin chips of emerald green lit the space of the empty window frame, glaring down at the mouthy blonde. Near-whiplash followed as everyone turned to face Harry. He sighed, resting chin on elbows upon the rail, muttering, "Prophecies are such a bitch."

Buffy grizzled at the Brit. "What would you know of prophecies? And why are you up there?"

"Fight or flight: much prefer avoiding a physical confrontation," Harry responded, slowly trekking down the stairs.

"Coward," Buffy snapped, irritated at the deliberate non-answer.

"That's enough, Buffy," Giles interrupted the two person volley. Turning to his fellow Brit, Giles pleaded, "Perhaps we could attempt some civility, on _everyone's_ behalf," he half-snapped at the smirk Buffy sported. "I won't pretend to know what has befallen you, until an hour ago I didn't even believe wizards were still around. However, I would like to know why you killed a person."

Huffing, Buffy sank back into her chair. "Perhaps he didn't like some guy's guts and he decided to off him," she muttered.

"Thank you for the vote of confidence, Miss Entitled," Harry sneered sarcastically, resettling in his chair.

"I bet you stabbed him in the back."

"_No_," Harry snapped. "I walked right up to him and slammed him into a wall."

"Yeah?" Buffy snarled back. "What'd he do? Threaten to kick your teeth in?"

"Shall I find you a history book?" Harry muttered, crossing his arms and leaning back in his chair. "You know you give a _worse_ first impression than a pureblood wizard? At least they have the excuse that they're terribly inbred."

Buffy threw her arms into the air, shouting, "I give up! What's your purpose on the Hellmouth?!"

"Sorry?" Harry crooked a brow, frowning at her reaction.

Giles coughed, happily interrupting with information. "Sunnydale is situated on a mystical convergence that leads directly into a demon dimension, a Hellmouth."

"Ah," Harry nodded before turning back toward the heated blonde. "You think this is the only map dot? Guess again. Not here for _you_." He stabbed the air sharply in her direction.

Buffy scoffed, "Yeah? Why else would you be here, if not for the mystical conflu-ey jigger?"

Harry's eyes slid shut, a painful closed smile spreading across his face. His fingers flexed spastically before curling into fists as he snorted, "How, exactly, do you still have friends?"

"Question for the ages, mate," Spike smirked, drawing the attention of all present. "Makes her _bloody_ hard to kill."

"Nobody asked you, fangless," Buffy snarled out.

Harry laughed, shaking his head. "That's another thing," he sighed. "Why are you holding a vampire prisoner?"

Buffy sputtered slightly, "You know he's a vampire?" A curt nod was his response. "I'm the Slayer," she announced proudly. A blank face. "The Chosen One," she continued weakly, a pout forming on her face.

"Sorry," Harry shrugged. "One of the hazards of the wizarding world? History is heavily propagandized and severely edited," he paused, snorting out a quick laugh before adding, "and fairy tales incorporate real objects."

"Giles," Buffy whined. "Make him play nice." The exasperated look on the ex-Watcher's face made Buffy pout all the more. Huffing, Buffy threw out, "Quit being all mysterious man, and get to the facts before I get cranky and flatten you."

Harry shrugged, choosing to let the threat linger a bit before responding, snaking out a hand to hold Xander's. Closing his eyes, and squeezing Xander's hand, Harry responded, solemnly, "Attempting to intimidate me won't work. I've lived with bullies my entire life, and I have never willingly given in to them." Reluctantly, Harry re-opened his eyes, staring directly at the self-important female.

Buffy looked a bit shaken as she stared at those emerald pools. "I-," she started. "I'm not a bully," she responded weakly. "What kind of bully dies saving the world?" Her question spoken in anger and determination.

The blasé expression Harry gave her made her squirm slightly. Snorting, Harry answered, "So? I've saved the world. I've also died. I had a choice: stay dead, or come back and save everyone that I thought mattered. The choice was obvious at the time."

"Wish you had stayed dead," Buffy muttered, not actually believing Harry's words.

"Some days I'd agree," Harry smiled. "But then I meet someone like you and realize that my life is _most_ gratifying when the opportunity arises to piss off those like you _whenever_ they need a swift kick _in the arse_."

"Oh, mate!" Spike crowed out. "If I could move, I would _kiss_ you."

"Shut it!" Harry growled, eyes flashing.

Xander stood abruptly, drawing everyone's attention. "I think it's time for dessert!" Tugging on Harry's hand, he drew the two of them off to the kitchen.

BBT

Xander nearly slammed Harry into the wall as soon as they had turned the corner. "Harry," he whispered harshly. "What do you think you're doing?"

The shorter man slumped against the wall and sighed before adopting a pained smile. "Not sure. I just," he swallowed, his eyes darting side to side, refusing to meet Xander's own. "I didn't want this all to come out this way. I wanted you to know things before…" he trailed off.

Xander snorted slightly. "Before everything hit the fan?"

Harry barked a laugh. "Yeah," he responded, finally meeting Xander face to face.

_Damnit, Buffy, why do you always have to know everything __**now**__?_ Xander sighed at the pained look that permeated Harry's features. Pulling the slighter form to him, Xander reveled in the feel of Harry's arms wrapping around his torso, a head resting on his shoulder, warm breaths caressing his throat. "Do you wanna go?" he whispered, not surprised in the slightest at the tickling nod he received. Xander waited, knowing Harry would release him when he was ready.

Of course, the sound of squealing and bird calls interrupted the progress.

TBC


	15. Puffin Post

Title: Xander's Green Eyed Obsession  
Author: Grayswandir  
Fandom: Harry Potter, BtVS

A/N: Because I feel really awful for letting it sit for so long, even unintentionally, here's another chapter.

BBT

Harry groaned, reluctantly pulling away from Xander's embrace. _Brilliant! Lovely timing, as always._ Sprinting the short distance back to the living room, Harry tried not to laugh at the sudden anarchy that was the brazenly Slayer trying to catch the Ministry bird that had appeared at the party. It was amusing to him, seeing the stubborn blonde vaulting about attempting to contain the puffin the west coast offices used for official post letters. The bird swooping high whenever hands sought to capture it.

"You mind not trying to steal my post?" The slight bird deviated in its pattern, swooping over to Harry and dropping an envelope into his hand before darting back out the still broken panes. The Scoobies just stared at Harry as he inspected the letter.

"Interesting delivery method," Xander commented, pulling Harry tightly against himself. Harry smiled, snuggling back into the embrace.

"They use owls across the pond," Harry commented, offhandedly, distracted by the seal on the Ministry letter and choosing to ignore the elegantly drawn out form of his own name on the front. Prising the envelope open, Harry pulled the thick letter out groaning when he saw the letterhead belonged to the office of the US Minister for Magic. "Have I ever mentioned that I hate politics?" he muttered, examining the letter for anything immediately heinous.

Xander chuckled, "Once or twice."

"_So_, who's it from?" Buffy sing-songed gleefully.

_I will not hex Xander's friends, I will not hex Xander's friends._ Taking a deep breath, Harry recalled as many of his negotiating skills as he could, leveling his voice to a polite-friendly as he responded, "Not that you would know who but the Minister for Magic of the United States." Pausing, he added, "Or at least her office." He hadn't flipped to the second page before stuffing the letter back into the envelope.

Giles choked, coughing on his drink. "You receive post from state officials?" he asked, his incredulity barely noticeable beyond the hoarseness.

Harry couldn't contain his amusement at the reaction. Nodding, he teasingly added to the list, "Along with fan mail, hate mail, _and _endorsement offers. Of course, most of it doesn't come direct."

Buffy scoffed, "_You?_ Have fans? In what universe?"

"Buffy," Xander warned.

Harry waved him off. "It's okay," he reassured. Taking a deep breath, Harry smiled, squaring off with the Slayer. "This one, in fact. Have done since I was fifteen months old. And that is all the information _you_'re getting on that." _At least, until I've had some private time with Xander._

"Can you say _delusional_?" Buffy muttered sarcastically.

Crooking a brow, Harry smirked. "Don't believe _I_ could have fans?" Buffy's head shook. "Look to your right. I think I just got a new one." Curious looks shot towards the platinum blond prisoner.

Spike was shaking in silent mirth. _Oops!_ Harry silently released the vampire from his silencing spell, grateful he hadn't asked the vampire to bite him. The rumbling laughter rang through the quiet room.

"Enough of that, what's in the letter?" Willow bounced excitedly. Xander rolled his eyes at his friend's enthusiasm.

"Nothing important," Harry hedged. The raised brows sent his way had Harry shaking his head. "Fine," he sighed, resigning himself to the situation. "After translating it into English, it's an apology for stonewalling me, along with the information I requested. Which, if they had just fulfilled my request in the first place, would have prevented _this_ mishap from being so massive." Harry was not going to add that it was an admonition of complete idiocy that involved contacting Kingsley for identification confirmation. _Self-important blighters everywhere._

"Now," Harry cleared his throat. "I have had more than enough of your _fine company_," Harry pointedly glared at Buffy, "and wish to depart. Good night." Gently parting Xander's hands to take one in his own, Harry marched to the front door.

Giles silently walked the duo to the door, determined to fulfill his duties of host. Pulling the slightly askew door from its frame, he smiled politely. "This evening was… eventful, to say the least. I hope this doesn't prevent you from coming back. Buffy is… difficult on the best of occasions."

Harry smiled wanly back. "I've heard some of the more colorful stories," he paused eyes darting to Xander, "I think."

Xander grinned, bumping his shoulder against Harry's. "I'll tell you the unedited editions," he promised.

"Before you leave," Giles frowned, unsure of how to ask. An inquisitive look answered the abortive question. Gesturing to the battle carnage, Giles tried again. "Could you, perhaps?"

Harry smiled, "No problem." A swift flick from his wand and the air filled with the tinkling of glass shards, creaking of wood, and mostly muted screams as windows repaired, the door reset, and various artwork flew back to its original location, pristine once more.

"Thanks," Giles swallowed.

Sighing, Giles watched as Harry and Xander left for the evening, happy in the knowledge that Buffy's little tantrums hadn't brought the wrath of a wizard on them all. Closing the door, he turned back to the rest of the party.

"Honestly, Willow, what have you been reading?" Giles fought to keep his stern visage as the red head yelped. "Is killing an entirely appropriate topic for conversation at a dinner table?" he asked sarcastically.

Blushing, Willow squeaked, "I didn't mean to! It just, came out. I was looking for something to keep my mind off of Oz and I found 'Aeternus Sanguis', and my Latin translator failed. I just… didn't put it down after realizing it was about blood sacrifices for immortality."

Spike howled mirthfully, "Oh, Red! Those rituals _never_ work!" Everyone shot a glance at the laughing vampire. "What?" he growled. "I read! Just because _the great poof_ mostly pulls off the smarts card."

Giles snorted before rounding on Buffy. "And you," he spoke sternly. "Unless you intend to apologize, might I suggest you exercise _caution_ the next time you open your mouth around Harry?"

"What's the big deal, Giles?" Buffy huffed. "I've fought magic users before: Amy; Amy's mom; Ethan. No big."

"It's a very _big_!" Giles yelled. "In case it slipped your notice, you always had help! And did I, or did I not, say an _un_trained wizard could defeat a long practicing witch?" Nods replied, a sheepish look sprouted across the Slayer's face. "Harry is most definitely a _trained_ wizard and you are not a witch."

Giles glowered silently as the Slayer reddened in a mixture of fury and embarrassment. Meanwhile he racked his brain, searching for some contact that might have access to information on wizards, however much outdated it was. The Hellmouth just became a bit more interesting, and Giles was determined to make sure that change was for the better.

BBT

The evening had not ended with dinner for Harry and Xander. In fact, they remained awake hours after the clocks registered midnight. Lounging in bed, the duo recapped the tales they'd previously shared un-editing them as they went. Tears were shared in both laughter and solemnity. Worries and side-adventures were revealed.

And Xander had never felt so close to anyone before. Both of them had stood as outsiders in school, life, even with friends. Xander silently vowed to never let Buffy play Queen Bitch again. Xander laughed.

"What's so funny?" Harry asked, enjoying the mirth dancing in Xander's chocolate orbs.

"Nothing," Xander smiled. "Just…" he laughed again. Coughing, he finished, "Never thought I'd miss Cordelia."

Harry froze, frowning. "Your ex?" A hurtful expression covered his face, drawing himself upright.

Xander started slightly. "No, not, not like that," he scrambled to reassure Harry. Grabbing his right hand, Xander clarified, "Queen C was good for one really good thing: interrupting Buffy tirades. They never were friends." Rubbing his thumb over the back of Harry's knuckles, Xander stopped abruptly, frowning at broken nature of the scar Xander thought he knew about. Looking closer, the previously solid scar had changed into _words?_ Gently turning the hand around, Xander absently noted a hint of panic in Harry's eyes. _Why?_ There, in a less-refined version of Harry's scrawl, were the words _'I must not tell lies'_ in the form of deep, nearly livid, red scars. "How?" he whispered, aghast.

"Concealment charm," Harry muttered, the muscles in the captured arm twitched slightly as Xander looked up. Harry grimaced before quirking a pained smile. "Detention," he laughed, self-deprecation heavy in the sound. "I wrote lines with a blood quill until I bled, and then I wrote more. Can you guess what I wrote?" He laughed again. Harry, reading the loathing in Xander's eyes, continued, "The irony of it all? I wasn't even lying." Xander swallowed, covering the distinctive scar.

"So, Your Lordship," Xander breathed, determined to break the somber atmosphere. "You aren't a demon. You're a _wizard_-how _cool_ is that?!" Harry let loose a short laugh. "Vampires don't phase you. What's your opinion on werewolves?" _Never know when Oz might show up._

A thoughtful expression lit Harry's face, a slight smirk peeking out. "This is about Oz, isn't it?" The unfettered look of surprise drew Harry into a fit of giggles, falling sideways onto the bed.

Xander shook his head, his shock gone at the explosive reaction to his expression. Growling playfully, he launched himself to straddle Harry's shaking body, his fingers almost automatically tickling Harry's ribs. The lean form arched up, giggles switching to laughs, before Xander halted. The trembling subsided, tears of mirth breaking free, before Xander asked, mock-sternly, "Alright, you Minx you, how did you know?"

"Didn't," Harry shrugged. "I suspected, though. Wasn't sure until now." Xander stared at Harry, silently urging him to continue. Sighing, Harry started with, "I've told you about Teddy, and how the adoption process is a bit, stalled?"

"Yeah," Xander drew out his response, confused on the relevance. _Unless…_ "Is Teddy a werewolf?"

"No one is quite sure if he will ever turn or not," Harry answered, biting his lip. "His dad, Remus, was a werewolf. Best teacher I ever had. Andromeda and I both hope that because his mother, Nymphadora, was a metamorphmagus that he won't turn."

Xander's face contorted on the strange names and the weird word, confusion written plainly in the expression. Ignoring the names, he asked, "A meta-what?"

Harry sighed, smiling slightly as he explained the odd genetic quirk.

"Okay, I think I understand that," Xander responded shortly after the lesson was imparted. Harry's brow rose minutely. Slightly peeved at the hint, Xander summarized, "Fear of a hybrid species in barely adult hands, I get it."

Harry laughed, "I suppose you do." His emerald eyes shined happily.

"But that isn't everything about Teddy, you, and adoption, is it?" Xander asked.

Harry shook his head. "If only," he huffed out.

Xander tried to imagine what else could possibly be preventing Harry from caring for his godson, and decided that he had had enough of this thinking deep for any given night. Shaking his entire body, Xander fell back on the bed, pulling Harry tightly into his side. "Enough serious-ous-ness!" he declared. "Famous wizards I may have heard of for 500, Harry. Go!"

Harry laughed. Rubbing his ear against Xander's chest as he drew himself into the embrace, he asked, "Shall I list a few?"

"Have at it."

"Merlin."

"Of course."

"Nicolas Flamel."

Xander frowned. "The alchemist?" He seemed to remember Willow talking about someone by that name. Or maybe it was teacher.

Harry nodded. "The same." He paused for a moment before continuing with, "Dracula."

"No!" Xander gasped out.

"_Yes._"

"Huh, explains a lot."

Harry chuckled before frowning. "I can't recall any others that have spilled into the regular world."

Xander shrugged, "That's okay. I didn't expect to know that many. So, just for laughs, even though I couldn't possibly know them by name, who are the famous wizards of now?"

Harry choked slightly, coughing to cover his nervousness. "Well," he started. "There are three that are really close in notoriety." He stopped, not sure who to start with.

"Yeah?" Xander urged, oddly intrigued by the sudden tension in Harry's voice.

Flipping a mental coin, Harry began, "Albus Dumbledore, former Headmaster of Hogwarts School, along with many other titles. Known for defeating the Dark Lord Grindelwald during the Second World War." He finished with, "Died, killed in the spring of '97."

"Did you know him?" Xander heard a note of deep sorrow in the closing declaration.

"I've been accused of knowing and not knowing him," Harry scoffed out. "He was… one of my closest teachers and I only had lessons from him for a year." A pair of tears dripped hotly from his eyes. Swallowing hard, Harry confessed, "I watched him die."

"Oh, Harry," Xander scrambled, wishing to clobber himself for even asking these questions. _Stupid, stupid, stupid!_

Harry sniffed, shaking his head and rubbing the tear tracks from his face. "It's okay. You couldn't have known," he assured. Taking a deep breath, Harry continued, "Famous wizard number two: Tom Marvolo Riddle, also known as Lord Voldemort or a right pain in the _arse!_"

Xander laughed hard. "No love lost there, then?"

"Course not!" Harry replied, shoving an elaborately affronted expression onto his face. "Moldy-warts murdered my parents, orchestrated my godfather's death, and is directly responsible for the death of Teddy's parents! Why would I ever care for him?" Heavy sarcasm dripped from the question.

Xander turned red with laughter, Harry joining him for a few bars. As he settled slightly, Xander asked, "Okay, so I can see why he might be famous, even if for dreadful things. Candidate three?" The blush that touched Harry's face was not a part of the expected response. "Please don't tell me it's the teacher you did the hot and heavy with."

"No," Harry coughed out. "No!"

"Out with it then," Xander half-demanded, wondering what could be so bad. "C'mon. It can't be that bad," he chided.

"Uhm," Harry deliberately delayed answering. Just as Xander started to ask again, he mumbled lowly into his chest.

"Sorry?" Xander frowned, pulling his head from the pillow to look at the nervous raven haired devil. "Harry, I didn't hear that."

Harry took a deep breath, before blurting out, "Harry Potter." He bit his lip, worrying it between his teeth as he gazed everywhere but at Xander.

Xander blinked, attempting to connect the random dots in his memory. "That isn't someone else, is it?" A head shake was received in response. "What did you do?"

Groaning with his lip still caught, Harry tittered out his reply. "Erm, I did the impossible. Did the one thing I'm really good at: I lived. And, I killed the previously mentioned bastard."

Xander sighed, slightly exasperated. _Like pulling teeth._ Huffing, he asked, "Okay, bad man ker-splat aside, what _exactly_ was the impossible? And don't say live."

Grumbling, Harry grit-out, "Survived the Killing Curse. Twice," he absently added.

Xander's responding laughter momentarily fell into hysteria. "Okay," he chuckled. "Let me get this straight: you survived, what I'm guessing is a very much unblock-able, no-cure possible, curse twice, but you've also died?"

Harry laughed, seeing the humor in the situation. "Well," he reasoned, "the second time did kill me, but didn't. It killed something that had been a part of me for a very long time but was not a part of me, and didn't that make as much sense as using scrolls and quills in this day and age?" They both fell into chuckles, happily thinking of the craziness that was impossibilities and inbred wizards.

As the chuckles subsided, Xander's hand rubbing up and down Harry's ribcage, it dawned on him. "You weren't kidding about the fan mail, were you?" Harry growled in annoyance, putting a quick jab to Xander's opposite side for good measure. "Hey! Okay! No need for violence," he exclaimed.

Harry sighed, happily settling into position for the night, sleep gnawing away for dominance. A thought occurred, just as he was ready to succumb. "Would you like to meet Teddy?"

TBC


End file.
